Lily's Love
by MJ's Angel
Summary: Sequel to Rumple's Rose. The curse has been enacted and everyone is in Storybrooke. Lily, a.k.a. Rose, shows everyone that love conquers all in the darkest of times. More Rumbelle in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**Look who's back with the second installment of Rumple's Rose. I know you guys loved the last story and I thank you for supporting me and giving me such positive feedback. I hope you guys like this story just as much as the first. Now, here is Rumple's Rose part two; Lily's Love.**

_"What's my name?"_

_"Mr. Gold." _

_"What is the name of the town?"_

_"Storybrooke." _

_"Alright, one last question. What is your name?"_

_"My name is Lily."_

* * *

><p>Lily. That was her name now. Lily. They were in a new world. They had a new life. Everything was different. He was now Mr. Gold, owner of Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop and Antiques, landlord of most of the property of Storybrooke. He practically owned the town. People feared him, just as they did in the Enchanted Forest. Everyone, except one person. The only one who loved him and didn't fear him. She was once called Rose in her past life. Now, she is Lily Gold, daughter of Mr. Gold. He still didn't understand how or why Regina would allow him something that would bring his happiness. The curse was meant to take away everyone's happy ending so she could have her own. He couldn't think on it more before Lily's voice brought him from his thought.<p>

"Why are you asking me questions, Daddy?" She didn't remember. No one in town would remember. Since he was the Dark One and he created the curse, his memory was intact. And because he created it and only his magic could affect Rose, her memory was gone. He simply smiled.

"Just wanted to refresh my memory about some things. I'm getting old." She smiled her sweet smile that he loved so much.

"I don't think you're that old." He chuckled.

"You have no idea." She knitted her eyebrows together in confusion. He knew she didn't know what he meant by that. "Come on. Time to get you ready for school."

"Okay." Things that morning fell into place without a thought. After he put on one of his expensive suits, he helped Lily dress. Then, they both went down to the kitchen and he prepared them breakfast. She helped him, as she always did. They sat at the small table in the kitchen and ate together as Lily told him of her dreams. He was glad that was something that didn't change. Lily was still his Rose. She was still the same sweet little girl that he raised back in the Enchanted Forest. After breakfast, they got in his car and he drove her to school. They pulled up to the school and he saw the other children on the playground. He wondered if Lily had friends. She didn't have the opportunity to have any back home. He was, once again, pulled from his thoughts by Lily. "Daddy?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Are you okay?" He gave her a gentle smile.

"Of course. Why do you ask?"

"You made a weird face. Does your ankle hurt again?" He hated that he had his shattered ankle back and it worried her.

"No, it's not that. I was just thinking."

"About what?" He chuckled.

"Grown up things."

"What kind of grown up things?" Just as curious as ever, he thought.

"Have a good day at school, flower." He too late caught his mistake. Did he call her that in this world? He hadn't even thought of it before it slipped out of his mouth. It was a usual term of endearment he called her since she was a baby.

"I will, Daddy." She gave him a quick hug and got out of the car. He assumed that answered his question. He still called her that. He watched her as she joined the other children on the playground. She looked so happy and he was glad. She seemed to be very well liked and have a lot of friends. He then pulled away from the school and headed down to his shop. He parked his car in the alley next to the shop. He exited his car and went around the front, looking up at the shop sign. "Mr. Gold Pawnbroker & Antique Dealer." He entered his shop and saw all of the antique merchandise. He recognized most of it from the Enchanted Forest. He saw the puppets of Geppetto's parents, a drinking stile of one of the seven dwarfs, even the mobile from Snow White's castle.

None of that was important. He had a business to run. He opened up shop and went into his office in the back. He saw a pile of documents on his desk. He sat at his desk and started to sort through them. They were records of everyone in Storybrooke that were renting from him. Collection day for the month was in a week and a lot of people owed him a lot of money. After about an hour of going through papers, he decided to take a break for the small print of the paper were starting to hurt his eyes. His ankle was also starting to bother him. He opened the drawer of his desk for a bottle of pain killers.

In the drawer, he noticed a manila folder. He pulled it out and opened it. Inside were more documents. As he looked on, he noticed they were court case papers. He figured they were people trying to sue him. Continuing through the papers, he came across some that really caught his attention. They looked like adoption papers. He wondered why he had adoption papers. He then came across a certificate of adoption that read: This certificate certifies that Lily Anne Hart has been formally adopted by Mr. Robert Gold on the 22nd of August of the year 1982. Lily? He adopted Lily? That would make sense. Rose, or rather Lily, still wasn't his biological daughter. His false memories started playing out. He started to see how it all started.

* * *

><p><strong>February 1982<strong>

Mr. Gold was making his rounds around town, collecting rent from everyone. He had been to all the small businesses and the apartment complex. His next target were the houses that people were renting. Only a few could afford to buy their houses so they wouldn't owe Gold anything. Everyone else wasn't as lucky. His last stop was a small one story house on a corner. As he approached the house, he saw a young girl with long brown hair in the front yard playing with a cat. He had seen the girl many times, but never spoke to her. She wore a pink dress with multi-colored leggings and a light jacket. She must be cold, he thought. In Maine, it was always cold. That jacket alone couldn't be keeping her warm. He smiled at her as he went up the walkway.

"Hello there." She looked up at him with bright emerald eyes. She gave him a nervous smile.

"Hi." He noticed the nervous tone in her voice. No doubt she probably feared him just like everyone else.

"What's your name, little one?" She hesitated for a moment. She wasn't sure whether to answer him or not.

"I can't talk to strangers."

"I see. Well, let me introduce myself. My name is Mr. Gold."

"Gold is a funny name." He chuckled.

"I suppose it is. What about you? Do you have a funny name?" She gave an adorable little giggle.

"No. My name is Lily."

"Lily, eh? That's a lovely name for a young lady as lovely as yourself." She smiled. He gestured to the cat. "What's your cat's name?"

"He's not mine, but he comes by everyday and I like to play with him. I call him Simba."

"Simba? What made you choose that name?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"I dunno. I just did. Do you like cats?" He chuckled.

"I'm actually more of a dog person."

"I like dogs too." This child is delightful, he thought. He had always had a weak spot for children, but there was something about that little girl that was different. She was adorably sweet and kind. Unlike...

"Lily! What did I tell you about talking to strangers?!" He looked up and saw Lily's mother, Portia. She had long curly raven hair and dark emerald eyes. While Lily's eyes were filled with curiosity and wonder, her mother's were filled with anger and bitterness. Aside from the nuns, she was his least favorite tenant. Lily stood up.

"But..."

"Don't you dare 'but' me! And I told you to stop playing with that damn cat! It could have a disease and I am not paying for you to get a rabies shot! Get your ass in this house right now!" Without another word, Lily ran into the house. Portia turned back to Mr. Gold.

"A bit hard on the girl, don't you think?"

"What do you care?" He shrugged his shoulders.

"Simply making an observation." She approached him with an envelope in her hand.

"How I handle my daughter is my business. Here's the rent." He took the envelope and looked inside of it. He then stuffed the envelope in his coat pocket.

"Well, looks like my business here is done. And if I were you, I'd go easy on the girl. She's only a child." She rolled her eyes.

"I'll handle her however I see fit. Do you have a problem with that?" He didn't trust the way she said that, but it wasn't any of his business. In the back of his mind, he still worried for the poor girl. Portia Hart was never the nicest woman in town. She always put people down and felt she was better than everyone else. Her former boyfriend was the same way. He felt that things should always go his way and people should do what he wanted just because he was the sheriff at the time. He had died in a drunk driving accident. After that, Deputy Graham took over as sheriff and Portia became even more of a bitch. Not long after, she had Lily. Everyone in the small town worried for the child, but no one dared to do anything. He simply smirked.

"Not at all. Good day to you, Ms. Hart." He turned to leave. Portia turned and went back inside, slamming the door behind her. He turned and saw Lily in the window. She smiled and waved at him. He smiled and waved back. He then turned and made his way back to his car. He didn't see a hand grab Lily's arm and yank her from the window. When he sat back in his car, he looked to see if Lily was still in the window and saw that she wasn't. Figuring she left on her own, he started up his car and drove off. He would only later realize his mistake of leaving her to her mother's vices.

**What do you guys think? Sorry it started off kinda somber, but it will get better. Just give it time. Please leave only positive reviews.**


	2. Chapter 2

Rumple remembered it all, even though it never happened. Of course with it being merely a false memory, his "past" self knew nothing of who Lily once was. It played out as if there was life in Storybrooke long before the curse. The more he recalled on the "memories", the worse things got.

* * *

><p>It had been a week since Mr. Gold had met Lily. She was such a sweet girl. If only her mother could be half as pleasant as she was. It was all in the past, but he couldn't help but think about the child. Her mother was very easy to anger. What she did with that anger towards Lily was what worried him. He tried to give Portia the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she wouldn't go as far as to harm her own child. Something in the back of his mind told him he was wrong, but he tried to ignore it. He continued on with his days. He ran his shop and conducted his business. He was in his office when he heard the bell ding. Sighing in frustration, he got up and went to see who entered his shop. When he pulled back the curtain, he saw a child with brown hair looking around one of the counters.<p>

"May I help you?" She turned and he saw a pair of familiar emerald eyes.

"Hi, Mr. Gold." He couldn't help but smile at the child. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was happy to see her.

"Hello, Lily. What brings you by today?" She walked over to him.

"I wanted to see you." He was a bit shocked. No one ever wanted to see him unless they wanted to negotiate or make deals with him. Otherwise, people tried to avoid him.

"Really? And why would you want to see me?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"I think you're really nice." He had to chuckle.

"Is that right? I think everyone else would disagree with you." She tilted her head in confusion.

"Why?" He smirked.

"Well, believe it or not, many people think I'm very mean. Some might even say evil."

"I don't think you're mean."

"I can see that. You would be the first." She gave him a smile.

"So, can I stay? Please?" He couldn't help but chuckle. She truly was an odd child, but she was tolerable.

"I don't see why not. Does your mother know you're here?" Her smile fell and looked down at her feet.

"No."

"Really? And where does she think you are right now?" She hesitated before she gave an answer.

"Probably at home." He was a bit confused.

"If she thinks you're at home, where is she?" She shrugged her shoulders again.

"Mommy doesn't come home until really late. I think she works, but I don't know where." He knew exactly where Portia worked. She was a bartender down at the Rabbit Hole. She drank more drinks than she served. He noticed that every time he went to collect rent there, she would always be fawning over every guy there, completely drunk. It was the only reason she kept her job. She always kept men coming back every night. It was amazing she was ever sober enough to care for her young daughter.

"I see. Well, you are welcome to stay here, but you can't stay too late. You need to be back home before your mother." She smiled once again.

"Okay." He led her back to his office and she sat on the mattress he kept there for if he ever stayed late and needed to rest. He sat back at his desk and resumed his paperwork. He looked over and saw Lily slowly taking off her backpack. He noticed that she looked like she was being extremely careful and her face contorted in slight pain. He worried about her.

"Are you alright, Lily? You look pained." When she looked up, he didn't miss the second of fear in her eyes.

"Yeah. I fell off the jungle gym at school today." He didn't believe that for a moment.

"Really? Did you see the nurse?" She didn't look at him.

"Yes. She said I was okay." He knew she was lying. He stood from his desk, walked over to the mattress and sat next to her. She looked up to him.

"Let me see." He saw another flash of fear in her eyes. He was certain that she was lying to him. She was hiding something.

"Why?"

"I might be able to help you. I know a thing or two about pain and how to deal with it. You wouldn't want your mother to worry if she came home and saw you in pain, would you?" He saw the hesitation in her eyes. He only wished he knew what was going through her mind at that moment. She started to remove her jacket. He saw she was in even more pain and helped her. When the jacket was off, what he saw was horrifyingly disturbing. Both of her arms were covered in dark bruises and scratch marks. The bruises went up her arm to her shoulder and who knows where else. She didn't fall off any jungle gym. The child was beaten horribly.

"Lily, you're covered in bruises."

"I told you. I fell off the jungle gym at school."

"Is that all that happened? You just fell?" In the back of his mind, he had a pretty good idea what happened, but he wanted to see if she would tell the truth when given the chance.

"Yes." He could tell she didn't want to tell what happened. He knew Portia did it. He could have easily taken her down to the sheriff and report what Portia did, but he could prove anything and Lily would just tell him she fell. He had to just play along for the time being. He didn't want to pressure her for the truth and risk losing what little trust she had for him.

"Well, try to be careful next time. You could break something if you're not careful." He gave her a few ice packs that he kept in case his ankle ever bothered him too much. The next hour was filled with gentle conversation. Lily had a very large array of topics, most involved odd dreams she had. Mr. Gold found the girl most entertaining.

After a while, he heard her stomach growl angrily. She was hungry. He knew Portia would still be working. He didn't know if she would've had the decency to leave her daughter something for dinner. To be on the safe side, he decided to order dinner. He called Dove, his personal assistant, to pick up some food from Granny's Diner. When he heard the bell over the door, he went to meet Dove in the front of the shop so he wouldn't see Lily. Dove questioned why he had two different orders, but he knew better than to question his boss. Gold gave Dove the rest of the day off. He and Lily enjoyed their meals as Lily carried on about one of her dreams that involved a mermaid and her talking animal friends. Another two hours went by and it was starting to get dark out. Gold checked his watch that it was almost six o'clock. He hadn't realized how the time had went by. He couldn't remember the last time he had a decent conversation with a person, even if it was a child. Though he didn't want it to end, he knew she needed to leave.

"It's getting late, Lily. You need to head home before it gets too dark." He saw the disappointment in her eyes. He had to admit he was disappointed as well.

"But I don't wanna go."

"I know, but you have to. It's going to be dark soon and you have school in the morning. You need your rest."

"Okay." He helped her put on her jacket and backpack. He led her to the back door so no one would see her coming from his shop. Before she left, she looked up to him. "Mr. Gold?"

"Yes?" She hesitated for a moment.

"Is...is it okay if I come over tomorrow?" He smiled.

"Of course. You come over anytime you like." She smiled and hugged him. He hesitated, then returned the hug. She broke away from him and headed out the door.

"See you tomorrow, Mr. Gold."

"See you tomorrow, Lily."

Over the next two months, Lily went to Mr. Gold's shop everyday. It became a new routine for them. She would come over, tell him about her day at school, then go off on whatever topic she came up with while they ate dinner. It gave him comfort to know that she wasn't at home by herself and that she had a decent meal. Unfortunately, the bruises were also apart of the routine. Every few days, Lily would have a new bruise or mark on her. Each time, she would come up with an excuse from falling to bumping into things. Gold truly worried for the child's safety in that house with her mother. He knew she was behind the pain the child went through. He couldn't bear to see Lily that way. He didn't know how much longer he could keep quiet about the matter.

It was the end of the month and Gold was making his rounds collecting rent. He and Lily agreed that would be the only day she didn't visit since her mother was always home of rent day. He still left their house last on his route. When he pulled up, he noticed the front door was wide open. This wasn't unusual. Portia was known to leave it open when she stumbled home from work. When he approached the door, he heard yelling. He suddenly worried about Lily. He entered and looked for the source of the yelling. When he entered the room, he was horrified at the sight. He saw Portia mercilessly hitting Lily with the metal end of a belt. Lily screamed and cried as she tried to block the blows. Mr. Gold hurried over and grabbed Portia's wrist to stop her.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" She looked at him with anger in her eyes. He could smell the alcohol heavy on her breath.

"I'm teaching my daughter a lesson! I know she's been hanging around you, Gold! She disobeyed me!" She turned her attention back to Lily, who was still cowering in the corner. "YOU HEAR THAT, YOU LITTLE BRAT?! YOU'RE A DISOBEDIENT BASTARD CHILD WHO RUINED MY LIFE!"

"That is enough! You're drunk!" He managed to get the belt out of her hand and threw it to the ground.

"Doesn't make it not true! She's nothing but a mistake I've been stuck with! SHE DESERVES EVERYTHING THAT'S COMING TO HER!" She tried to lunge at Lily, but Gold struck her in the head with his cane, knocking her unconscious. He then went over to check on Lily.

"Lily?" She lifted her head from her knees and looked up at him. Her eyes were bloodshot from crying and one was blackened and swollen half shut. Her puffy cheeks were covered by scratch marks. She didn't look like herself. Just the previous day, he had saw her smiling and happy, her bright emerald eyes shining with wonder. The child before him was not that little girl at the moment. She cried again as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

"Mr. Gold!" He hugged her back and tried to comfort her.

"It's alright, sweetheart. It's over now. She can't hurt you anymore. She won't hurt you anymore." And he was going to make sure of it.

**How do you guys like this? I know it was even sadder than the first, but like I said, it will get better. That what this story is about, right?**

**Also, on a serious note, pardon my potty mouth, I FUCKING HATE CHILD ABUSE! Seriously, who the fuck would hurt a child? Who the hell looks at a child's face and thinks, "I'm going to blame you for all of my problems and take my anger out on you."? I can't stand it. If you ever think that a child may be getting hurt at home or anywhere, you need to say something. Even if you can't prove it, you need to voice your concerns. Children are getting abused everyday and anyone that notices don't speak up. Please, for the love of God, say something! **


	3. Chapter 3

Mr. Gold called the sheriff and told him to also call an ambulance. Lily was badly bruised on the outside, but he wanted to make sure she didn't have any internal damage as well. She clung to him until Sheriff Graham finally showed with the ambulance. Gold explained what happened with Portia, who had come to by that point. Graham arrested her and took her down to the station while the paramedics loaded Lily into the ambulance. It was extremely difficult to tear her away from Gold because she was afraid to be without him.

"Mr. Gold..."

"It's alright, Lily. I'll be right behind the ambulance in my car. I will meet you at the hospital."

"But..."

"Don't worry. Everything will be okay. I promise." She didn't know why, but she trusted him. She let the paramedics take her to the ambulance. Gold got in his car and followed it down to the hospital. Once there, the paramedics immediately brought her to a room and had her examined. Gold was forced to wait in the waiting room until they finished. Half an hour later, Sheriff Graham arrived and approached Gold.

"Mr. Gold? I need to ask you some questions." Gold sighed in frustration. He didn't feel like dealing with the sheriff. All he wanted was to be sure that Lily was alright.

"Make it quick, Sheriff." Graham took out a pad and pen.

"Okay, well, I need to get your full statement of the events. Why were you at the Hart residence tonight?" Gold rolled his eyes.

"It's the end of the month. I was collecting rent. The Hart residence is the last stop on my route." Graham wrote down everything.

"Okay. And what prompted you to enter the house?"

"When I arrived, the door was wide open. Ms. Hart has been known to do so when she stumbles home intoxicated. When I approached the house, I heard yelling and screaming. Naturally, I went in to see what was going on."

"And when you entered the house, you saw Ms. Hart hurting the child?" Gold gritted his teeth as he recalled the horrifying scene. Lily was being beaten senseless by her cold-hearted drunk of a mother. He recalled the bruises and scars and the tears and the cries of pain. He could kill the woman for doing such a terrible thing to a child.

"Yes. I was able to stop her before she did anything more."

"By beating her with your cane?" He wished he had beat her. He would've beat her worse than she beat Lily. If he had his way, the woman would suffer so much, she would wish she had never been born.

"I did not _beat _her. I simply hit her once with my cane. In defense of the child, of course." Graham continued writing on his pad.

"Do you have any prior relationship with the child before tonight?" Gold wanted to lie and tell him that he hadn't known much of the child, but he couldn't deny it. Graham witness how Lily was with him. She knew who he was and she wanted him to protect her. She obvious she had ties to him.

"Yes, I do."

"Care to elaborate?" He sighed.

"About two months ago, I went to that house to collect rent as I did every month. The girl happened to be outside that day. We had a brief conversation, I collected the rent, and I went about my business. A week later, the child wandered into my shop, claiming she wished to stay and talk."

"And what happened after that?"

"We talked. She's a very imaginative child, she had a lot of talk about. We talked, I fed her, and she went home. Same routine everyday since. Nothing more." Graham wrote down his statement, with a bunch of questions rattling in his mind. He knew it probably wasn't a good idea to ask most of them, so he decided to ask the safest one.

"No offensive, Mr. Gold, but why would she voluntarily come to see you everyday?" Gold still pondered that himself. The child had only met him once and had a short conversation with him before she decided she wanted to see him so much. She automatically assumed he was a nice man. She couldn't be more wrong, he thought, but she won't know that anytime soon. He gave the sheriff a smirk.

"I suppose that's something you'll need to ask the child." Dr. Whale approached the two men.

"Sheriff. Mr. Gold." Gold turned to the doctor.

"What's Lily's condition?"

"Honestly, I'm surprised this child is still up and about. I took some X-rays and found multiple fractures and breaks in her arms, legs, and ribs dating back to her infancy. To make an educated guess, she's been getting beaten since she was six months old." Graham and Gold were both in shock, but Gold hid his surprise. Graham gave a heavy sigh.

"My god. Portia's been torturing this child her entire life." Whale looked to Gold.

"Mr. Gold, she's been asking for you since she arrived. She's...very insistent that she sees you." Gold could understand that. She was surrounded by people she didn't know and she was afraid. She wanted to see someone she knew. Someone she trusted. Before Gold could leave, Graham stopped him.

"Wait a minute. I need to talk to her first. Make sure your stories match up." Whale led Graham to Lily's room. Gold didn't want to wait to see Lily, but he needed to. He needed that time to calm himself. Portia Hart had been beating and torturing her own daughter since she was just a helpless baby. As a baby, she couldn't even protect herself. Even as at four, all she could do was shield some of her body from the abusive blows. That did do much either seeing where she was now. He wanted nothing more than to torture the life out of the vile woman. After a few minutes, Graham and Whale returned to the waiting room. Gold stood up and approached them.

"Well, Sheriff?"

"Your stories match up. She confirmed everything."

"Well, now that you have what you need, am I allowed to see her?" Graham and Whale looked to each other. They both still pondered why such a sweet little girl would associate herself with a man like Gold. Graham looked back to Gold.

"Yes, you can. She _really _wants to see you. I don't think you should keep her waiting any longer." Gold nodded in agreement. Whale led him to Lily's room. When they entered, he saw Lily lying down on the bed with an IV in her arm and bandages on her arms and face. He couldn't imagine what it could've been like for her to grow up with such an abusive and uncaring mother. The child was able to survive for four years. She was much stronger than she looked. Lily saw Gold and smiled. He couldn't help but return the smile as he made his way over to her.

"You came." He sat down in the chair beside her bed.

"I told you I would. How are you feeling?"

"Better. Dr. Whale said he gave me something that would stop the pain and I don't feel any pain. It feels funny." He chuckled.

"What do you mean funny?"

"I can't feel the pain anymore. I always feel pain. It feels...weird." Gold's face fell as he realized what she meant. She had always felt pain. She probably couldn't remember the last time she wasn't in any pain. She was able to hide it exceptionally well. He only ever saw her react to pain when she had new bruises. She was truly the strongest person he had ever met and she was only a child. A child who did nothing to deserve the life she had. She would no longer have that life and she would never have that life again.

"Let's talk about something else. Anything else you want." She thought for a moment. He could see the wheels in her head turning, trying to figure out their next topic of discussion. She then looked at him with a serious face.

"What's gonna happen now?"

"What do you mean?"

"When I leave, am I gonna have to go back with Mommy?" A chill ran down his spine. He wouldn't dare allow anyone to put her back with that woman. She would be locked up for the rest of her life if he had anything to say about it.

"No, sweetheart. Your mommy is going away for a long time. You won't be with her anymore."

"Then, where do I go? Mommy said I don't have a daddy anymore."

"Well, when I child is taken out of their parents home, they get put in the foster system. You get sent to a home with other children who were taken from their parents. In most cases, the children get adopted into another family. The family will love and care for the child as if they were their own."

"But...I don't wanna go to the foster system. Can't I stay with you?" Gold was shocked at this. Lily stay with him? He had never thought about taking her in. Of course, he would offer her help with anything she needed, but adopting her? That was a different story. He wasn't exactly the father type. He had never had children before. Over the past two months, he had taken care of her better than her own mother did in four years. He had grown to care for, even love, the girl. Was he prepared to take on that responsibility on a 24/7 basis? Was he prepared to take Lily in as his daughter?

"Lily, dear, why do you want to come stay with me?"

"Because you're nice to me. You care about me. You don't hurt me. And..." She hesitated.

"And what? You can tell me." Her emerald eyes met his chocolate brown ones.

"Because...I never had a daddy and...I think of you...as my daddy." Gold was touched. People had always thought of him as cruel, relentless, heartless, evil. No one had ever spoken kindly of him before. And as her daddy, that took the cake. He couldn't just leave her to another family that might mistreat her. The foster system wasn't as kind as people thought. Many times, children get taken out of bad situations and put into worse ones. Some of those children even ended up dead. He couldn't take the chance of that happening to Lily.

"Is that really what you want, Lily? Do you want me to adopt you?" She didn't miss a beat.

"Yes."

* * *

><p>It had taken months to get the adoption to go through once the case against Portia was over. Gold was able to use his influence to pull some strings and was finally able to adopt and take home his new daughter. Gold remembered it all. He couldn't believe she was given such a traumatizing back story. Of course, none of it really happened, but Rose, a.k.a. Lily, thought it did. That was the life she thought she lived. She didn't remember the life of comfort and love she had back in the Enchanted Forest. She only remembered the pain and suffering of a fake life. No child should ever have that sort of life.<p>

After recalling the false memories, Gold looked to his watch and saw that it was nearly 3:00. Lily would be let out of school soon. He didn't realize so much time had passed. He grabbed his keys and made his way out. He locked up the shop and went to his car. When he arrived at the school, he saw Lily on the playground with the other kids. She was laughing and having fun. He was glad to see her that way. After the life she thought she had, joy and happiness was something she deserved. He got out of the car and made his way over to the gate. The teacher supervising the children saw Gold approaching and quickly made her way onto the playground with Lily's backpack in hand.

"Lily, your father's here." Lily looked over and smiled as she saw her daddy. The teacher helped her put on the backpack and walked her to the gate. The teacher opened the gate and let Lily out. Gold held out his hand to the child and she happily took it.

"How was your day, flower?"

"It was so much fun!" She began rambling about her day as he helped her into the car. Once she was buckled in, he left the school and headed to the shop. While at a red light, he started thinking. This was the first time he got to spend time with his daughter without bars to separate them. He wanted to spend every moment focusing on her, not some business that no one ever really goes in to. He looked in his rear-view mirror at her.

"Lily, darling?"

"Yes, Daddy?"

"How about, instead of going back to the shop, we go home and put on a movie? How does that sounds?" He saw her bright smile that he adored so much.

"Yay! Can I pick the movie?" He smiled.

"Of course."

"Yay!" He went past the pawn shop and went straight home. He pulled up to the large pink Victorian style house minutes later. He unbuckled Lily from her car seat and they both went inside. Lily left her backpack, jacket, and shoes by the door. Gold removed his overcoat and hung it on the coat rack.

"Alright, flower. I'm going upstairs for a moment. Why don't you pick out the movie?"

"Okay, Daddy." She ran to the living room and scanned through the VHS tapes. He made his way up the stairs to his bedroom. He removed his suit jacket, vest, and cufflinks. He slowly removed his shoes, careful of his broken ankle. He exchanged them for a pair of soft slippers. He then made his way back downstairs to find Lily sitting on the sofa with a bowl of cut up strawberries. He smiled as he saw his daughter still loved strawberries. He almost asked where she got them before he remembered that he cut them up the night before for her afternoon snack. He forgot to grab them and put them in the mini-fridge at the shop. It was a good thing he did. He sat next to Lily and she immediately snuggled up next to him. He wrapped an arm around her and held her close.

"So, what movie did you choose?"

"_Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs._" A movie about Snow White? From he knew of the princess from the Enchanted Forest, the movie ought to be interesting.

**Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Now, I really need your feedback. This is the part where you guys get to decide what happens next. I can either:**

**Tell the back story from Lily's POV  
>Or<br>Just continue on past it with Gold and Lily bonding time**

**Also, since Gaston isn't an enchanted rose in this story, what do you guys think his Storybrooke job should be. My original thought was to make him partners with Maurice at Game or Thorns. Should I go with that or do you guys have a different idea? Let me know in your review. Thanks.**


	4. Chapter 4

Once the movie was over, Rumple was in disbelief of how it portrayed the princess. She was nowhere near as sweet and innocent as the raven-haired maiden in the film. She may have talked to tiny woodland creatures on occasion, but she definitely didn't sing. Prince Charming was barely in the movie and yet he was her true love. And the evil queen was nowhere near as evil as Regina. All she did was trick the princess into eating a poison apple. Regina did so much more and for a completely different reason. She didn't care about being fairest of them all. She wanted revenge for her late fiance, Daniel. He could see why the movie would be portrayed in such a way. What really happened wasn't completely kid friendly. A child shouldn't watch a movie that involved curses, violence, and cold blooded murder of innocent people. All in all, the movie wasn't half bad. A bit cliche, but enjoyable.

After they finished the movie, it was nearly dinnertime. Gold got up and went to the kitchen to cook. Lily was right behind him, offering her help. He smiled, seeing that the only thing that changed about his little flower was her name. She still acted the same. She still loved all the same things. She still wanted to help. He still questioned why she was still with him. Regina would never allow such a thing, so why did it happen? He thought back to right before the curse. Rose was at his cell. She was scared and upset. The last thing she said to him was that she wanted to be with him, then the curse hit. He briefly remembered a glow from Rose's locket. Could that have been it? Did she make it so they could be together? Her magic was powerful enough to do so. It was the last thing she was thinking of before the curse and her magic must have reacted to her wish. It was the only logical explanation.

"Daddy?" He was pulled from his thoughts and turned his attention to her.

"Yes, Lily?"

"You were making a weird face again." He chuckled.

"Sorry. I was lost in thought. Nothing to worry yourself about." She gave him a suspicious look, but said nothing and continued squishing around in a bowl of ground meat. When everything was finished, they sat down to a spaghetti and meatballs dinner. Lily went on to talk about the movie that she had probably watched hundreds of times before, but he listened and responded. He loved her random topics and conversations. Seeing the world through a child's eyes was the most precious thing to him and he loved hearing his daughter speak of such things. He encouraged her to speak her mind about any and everything. She wouldn't be a child forever, so he enjoyed it while it would last. Thanks to the curse, that time got extended twenty-eight years. After they finished eating, they cleaned up the kitchen together. By the time they were done, it was nearly Lily's bedtime. Gold gave Lily her bath and tucked her in.

"Daddy, can you read me a bedtime story?" Gold thought the request odd. Rose had always loved reading and her storybooks, but bedtime stories wasn't something they usually did. He would get used to it eventually.

"Of course, sweetheart." He went over to the bookcase. It was fully of fairy tales and other children's books. Most of them were based on people from the Enchanted Forest. _Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty, The Little Mermaid, Alice in Wonderland, _and many others. He even saw one titled _Rumpelstiltskin. _He wondered how he was portrayed in this world and would read it later. "Which one would you like to hear tonight?"

"Can you read _Beauty and the Beast_? It's my favorite." He found the book and pulled it from the shelf. Why was it her favorite? He would soon find out. He pulled a chair up next to her bed and sat down in it. He opened the book and began to read.

_"Once upon a time in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, he was selfish and unkind._

_"One winter's night, an enchantress came to the castle disguised as an old beggar woman. She offered him a single rose in return for shelter from the cold. But the prince sneered at her gift, and turned her away._

_"So the enchantress transformed him into a hideous beast, and transformed all his servants into household objects. The spell would be broken only if the Beast could learn to love, and earn someone's love in return before the last petal fell from the enchanted rose._

_"Ashamed of his ugliness, the Beast locked himself away in his castle. An enchanted mirror was his only window to the outside world._

_"As the years passed, he lost all hope. For who could ever love a beast?"_

Gold was intrigued by the story so far, but it also a bit dark. Why would Lily love such a story? An enchantress turned a man into a hideous beast and he locked himself away from the world. He had no hope that anyone could love him. Rumple could relate to that. He was a beast himself back in the Enchanted Forest. A beast that no one could possibly love. He continued to read.

_"Not far from the castle, in a small village, lived a beautiful girl named..." _Gold stopped in his tracks. _Belle. _Could it possibly be his Belle? The very woman that was able to love him despite his flaws? Was this their story? The story already had it's differences, but there were also similarities. His curse, his beast-like appearance, his beautiful Belle.

"Daddy? Are you okay?" He then remembered where he was, what he was doing, and that he had stopped. He was reading his daughter a bedtime story.

"Yes, sweetheart. Just...lost my place." He continued reading.

_"Not far from the castle, in a small village, lived a beautiful girl named Belle. Belle loved to read tales of far-off places, magic spells, and princes in disguise. She yearned for excitement in her life, and for someone with whom to share it._

_"That someone was definitely not the handsome Gaston, who had announced his intention to marry Belle because she was the most beautiful girl in the village. Belle considered Gaston self-centered and arrogant. Besides, she had other plans."_

Gold continued to read the story to Lily. He read about Belle being forced to stay at the beast's castle. He read about the talking household objects that were the servants of the castle. He read about how Belle learned of the beast's curse and his anger at her. He read about how they finally were able to compromise and get along with each other. He read about how they fell in love. He read the fight between the Beast and Gaston and that Belle confessed her love for the Beast and broke his curse. Gold quickly realized it was their story. The details weren't the same, but it was them. He forced Belle to stay with him forever and grew angry with her a lot. They did fall in love, but the ending wasn't as happy. He read on.

_"Belle rushed into the prince's arms. As they kissed, magic filled the air. Soon Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts and Chip, and all the other enchanted objects were transformed back into their human forms._

_"That night, the castle was filled with love as Belle and the prince danced and danced, barely able to take their eyes off each other. And the castle was once again filled with life."_

Gold closed the book and looked over to Lily, who smiled at him.

"I love that story."

"So you say. Would you mind telling me why? Why is it your favorite?"

"Because of Belle. She knew the beast could be nice. No one else thought so, but she did. I thinks mean people can be good and I do too." He didn't expect such an answer from her. She had always been an intelligent and enlightened child, but she was still just a child. He almost expected her to say she liked the talking objects or the magic or even just the character of Belle. She was able to find the deeper meaning of the story.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. People think you're mean, but I know you can be really nice. It's kinda the same thing." He couldn't help but smile. She only got smarter, brighter, and sweeter everyday. Even with the life she thought she had, she was still able to find the bright side of any situation. Most kids would've been angry and bitter, never able to make themselves happy. They would blame their problems on their parents. She was nothing like that. She allowed herself happiness with someone who would love her and care for her. She kept her hope and accepted her new life.

"I suppose it is, flower. Well, time for bed."

"Okay. Goodnight, Daddy." He smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Goodnight, Lily." He stood from the chair and returned the book to it's place on the shelf. He then quietly left the room and closed the door. He made his way down the hall to his bedroom. He couldn't stop thinking about the story he just read to his daughter. Despite the differences, it was clear that it was about him and Belle. It was their story, but it ended very differently. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Belle wasn't there with them. Even in his false memories, he couldn't recall ever seeing her. He remembered her father Maurice, who was Moe French, owner of Game of Thorns, in Storybrooke. He even remembers that imbecile Gaston, who was George Aston who worked with Moe. Where was Belle? She had to have come over with the curse. He refused to think that she was dead. She was with her father in Avolonea when the curse hit. She had to be somewhere in Storybrooke, but where? Where could she possibly be?

* * *

><p>Beneath the hospital, there is a secret asylum for the mentally ill. In one of the rooms sat a young woman with long brown hair and bright blue eyes. She had no name, no family, no memories. She didn't know how long she had been there. She didn't know who put her there. She didn't know why she was there. She didn't think herself as insane. She didn't know if she would ever get out. The only person who came to her cell was the nurse who gave her medicine and food. No one ever visited her, except one. Every now and then, someone would come to her cell. A woman with short brown hair and brown eyes. She didn't know who the woman was or why she visited her. The woman never spoke to her. She only looked in through the window on the door. Sometimes she would wear a smile on her ruby red lips that unsettled the young woman.<p>

The young woman with no name spent her days sitting in the cell with her thoughts. She tried to recall her life before the asylum, but she got nothing. Her mind was a blank slate. She had to have had a life. Someone had to know she existed. Someone must know who she was. Did she have a family? A father and mother? Any brothers or sisters? Did she have friends? Perhaps a boyfriend or husband. She must have had someone in her life before she ended up there. The only proof she had of that was the ring on her finger and the baby growing inside of her.

**I noticed a few of you wanted Beauty and the Beast mentioned, so here it is. I would've done it for the movie, but this takes place in 1983 and Beauty and the Beast didn't come out until 1991. Plus, wouldn't you guys want to see his reaction more in detail like this? And of course, you all were wondering about Belle. Unfortunately, she's in the asylum, but you know she won't stay there forever. Tell me what you think. I hope you liked it. **


	5. Chapter 5

The rest of the week was pretty much routine. Every morning, Gold would get up, ready Lily for school and himself for work, make breakfast with her help, and drove her to school and went to his shop. Not much happened in Storybrooke, but Gold didn't care. He was just happy to have his daughter in his life again. He still often wondered what happened to Belle. Storybrooke was a very small town where everyone knew everyone. Belle didn't seem to be there. He refused to believe that she was dead, but he still worried that something might have happened to her. Last he knew, she was with her father in Avolonea. Had he done something to her? His only daughter? He knew royals. He would've tried to marry her off again. After her association with him, perhaps he had her locked away somewhere. No one would have her after she'd been with him. Even that big oaf Gaston wouldn't have her if he knew what they did. He worried for her.

It was Saturday and Lily didn't have school. Gold took her to the shop with him. No one really ever came into the shop. Every now and again, someone would come trying to get an extension on their rent or try to pawn something. Only a few ever bought anything. Other than that, the shop was usually empty. Gold took that time to spend more time with Lily. She kept him occupied and entertained. She was just as creative and energetic as she was in the Enchanted Forest. She was even able to brighten other people's day. The few that came into the shop with nervousness or fear left the shop smiling after seeing the sweet child. Many wondered how she could be so happy and sweet with Gold as her new father. Some feared for the child. They knew how Gold was and feared he would hurt her worse than her mother ever did. He proved them wrong everyday. He was a good father. He knew it and Lily knew it. That was all that mattered.

"Daddy! Look what I found!" She ran from the back over to him with a black velvet box in her hands.

"What do you have there, flower?" She handed him the box.

"It's a box. I think something's inside."

"Why didn't you open it?"

"Because you said some things in here can break easily. I didn't wanna break it." He chuckled. Since when was she so careful? He handed her the box back.

"Open it. It won't break. Let's see what's inside." She slowly opened the box and gasped. Gold smiled and chuckled at her expression. "What is it?"

"It's a necklace." She took the necklace from the box and held it up. Gold's eyes widened as he recognized the necklace. It was a pink heart-shaped locket with a gold lace. It was Rose's locket that he made for her. It was the same locket that hid the Dark One's Dagger. It was also the locket that gave Rose her magic. He noticed he hadn't seen it since the curse was cast. How was it separated from her? It could only be removed by Rose herself and she wore it up until the curse.

"Would you like to have it?" She smiled up at him.

"Can I?" He took the necklace and gestured for her to turned around. She did and he clasped it around her neck.

"You know, there's a story behind this necklace." She turned back to him.

"Really?"

"Yes. Would you like to hear it?"

"Yes." He smiled.

"Well, once upon a time, there lived a very powerful king. He had great magical powers and many people feared him. Many thought him as a beast. And that's just how he liked it, but the king felt unhappy. He was very lonely. One night, he took a walk through the woods to clear his mind. He then heard a sound. It sounded like crying. He went in search of it and found a basket near a tree. Inside the basket was a tiny baby. He didn't see any signs of her parents anywhere. He knew he couldn't leave her, so he took her back to his castle. He cleaned her, clothed her, and fed her. The king felt happy with the child and kept her as his daughter. He named the child Rose."

"Rose? That's a pretty name." He smiled.

"It is. Over the next few years, the king raised Rose as his own. The kingdom knew nothing of the new princess. He kept her a secret in fear that someone would try to take her from him. He wanted to protect her and keep her safe. On the child's fifth birthday, the king constructed a locket that contained the most powerful magic in existence, True Love. With it, she would always be protected from any harm as long as she had love in her heart. The child loved more than anyone else for she was able to love the beastly king. Her love was strong enough for the magic in the locket to last for centuries. It is said that if you wear this locket, you and your loved ones will always be protected." She looked down at her new locket.

"So, it's like good luck?"

"More powerful than luck. Love. You, just like Rose, have more love in your heart than anyone else. Your love will make the magic in the locket even stronger." Lily was in aw. She had always heard of magic in her stories, but she never knew anyone them to be true. Could the locket truly be magical?

"Is this really magic? Or is it just a story?" It wasn't a story. It was real. Though the story was tweaked, it was still true. He did find her as a baby and took her in. He raised her as his daughter. She did love him when no one else did. He gave her the locket to protect her from harm. There was a chance the locket's magic still worked. It was made from True Love. It could've survived the curse. He couldn't be sure at that point. He simply smiled.

"Stories are as true as you make them. If you don't believe it, then you don't. If you do, it's up to you want you take from it." She didn't fully understand what he meant, but part of her believed the story was real. She couldn't really explain it, but something told her the story was true. It felt somewhat familiar. Before she could question it any further, the bell above the door of the shop rang. Gold sighed as he saw Regina enter the shop. In Storybrooke, she was the mayor. She also had her old memories since she cast the curse.

"I'm not happy."

"I believe Dr. Hopper's office is down the street."

"I don't want to talk to him. I want to talk to you." She then noticed Lily standing behind the counter behind him. "Privately."

"Of course. Lily, sweetheart, why don't go in the back and watch some television while Ms. Mills and I talk."

"Okay, Daddy." She went to the back and closed the curtain behind her. Lily was curious about what Gold and the mayor wanted to talk about. She knew that if people had problems, they would come to him to try to deal. She wondered what the mayor wanted from him. She turned on the small TV so Gold would think she was watching it and listened in at the curtain. Once Gold heard the TV turn on, he returned his attention to Regina.

"Now, Madame Mayor, what would you like to talk about?"

"This town. This isn't the deal we made." Naturally, he knew exactly what she was talking about. She wasn't happy with her new life. It wasn't the revenge she planned. He didn't want her to know that he still had his memories.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what you're talking about." She looked at him for a moment and she thought she saw true ignorance. He didn't remember.

"You don't do you?" Lily didn't know either. Mayor Mills made a deal with her father, yet he doesn't know what she was referring to. It was odd. She had been with him long enough to know he didn't forget things easily, especially deals. "I was suppose to be happy here."

"Forgive me, but you're the mayor. You're the most powerful woman in the town. What is it to be unhappy about?"

"Everyone in this town does exactly what I want them to." Lily was even more confused. Was that a bad thing? If people did what you wanted them to, wouldn't that be good? People listening to you and doing what you want. What was there to be unhappy about?

"And that's a problem?"

"Well, they do it because they have to. Not because they want to. It's not real." Why wasn't it real? She was the mayor. People were supposed to do what she wanted them to. Wasn't that a good thing about being mayor?

"I'm sorry. What exactly is it that you want?"

"Nothing you can give me." After a moment, Lily heard the bell ring. The mayor left. Why would the mayor come to her father if he couldn't give her what she wanted? It didn't make sense. Lily moved away from the curtain before Gold realized she had been listening.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Gold closed up the shop early. He and Lily decided to pick up dinner from Granny's Diner and watch a movie at home. That night, Lily wanted to watch <em>Peter Pan. <em>Gold was skeptical about it. He knew about the real Peter Pan. The real Peter Pan was his father. His father abandoned him. His father was a coward. His father, at one point, tried to take his son from him and turned him against him. Lily didn't know any of that. Even Rose didn't know that. She never came into contact with him and Rumple was glad for that. The last thing he wanted was to burden his daughter with that information. He watched the movie and laughed at the comical inaccuracy, especially of Captain Hook. He also knew the real captain and he was nothing like the long-haired, bumbling idiot in the movie. Whoever Walt Disney was really knew how to kid proof stories.

After the movie, Lily had her bath and Gold put her to bed. She didn't ask for a bedtime story that night. Gold thought it odd. She had asked for a story every night. He wondered why she didn't want a story, but didn't say anything. He kissed her forehead and told her goodnight. A few hours later, she woke up and looked over at the clock on her nightstand. It was one in the morning. She was sure Gold would be asleep. She climbed out of bed and went to her closet. She slipped on a pair of leggings and shoes. She then grabbed a jacket and her backpack. She quietly left her room and went over to Gold's. She peeked in and saw that he was sound asleep. She then quietly made her way down the stairs and out the back door.

She made her way down to the main square of town. She looked up at the clock tower over the library. The library had been closed for as long as she could remember and the clock never moved. It always read 8:14. She continued her way down to the hospital. With it being very late, there weren't a lot of people there. There were only a few nurses here and there. The nurse at the front desk was passed out sleeping. Lily walked past the desk to the door with a keypad. Using the wheelchair near the door, she climbed up and put in the code to answer the door. Once she heard it unlock, she got down from the chair and opened the door. Closing the door behind her, she descended the stairs. There was another desk with another nurse, who was actually awake. Lily approached the desk with a smile.

"Hi, Nurse Nancy." The nurse gave her a small smile.

"Hello, Lily. Gold still doesn't know you're coming here?"

"I don't think so." She reached into her backpack and pulled out a container. "I brought you some brownies from Granny's."

"Double fudge with caramel?"

"Your favorite." The nurse took the container.

"And that's why you're my favorite." Lily smiled again. She then frowned remembering why she was there in the first place.

"How is she?" Nancy took a bite of a brownie.

"Same as she was last time you visited. Had to sedate her. She's awake, but she still can't move. You got fifteen minutes."

"Okay." Nancy gave her the keys to the cells. Lily took them and went down the hall. She waved to the man with the long black hair who was always mopping. She tried to talk to him, but never responded. He just stared at her. She stopped trying to talk to him, but still greeted him when she came down. As she made her way down the hall, she felt something odd when she passed by the second door. She didn't know why. Many times she had passed by that door and never once had that feeling. She brushed it off and went to the third door. She unlocked it and went inside. Sitting on the bed, she saw a woman leaning against the wall. The woman's eyes shifted to the door and saw the young child and groaned.

"You again?" Lily went over and climbed up on the bed, sitting next to her.

"Hi, Mommy." Portia groaned again and rolled her eyes.

"Stop calling me that, you little brat! I'm not your mommy anymore. I don't even know why you still come down here."

"Because I want to see you. I want to see if you're okay."

"I'd be better if you didn't bother me every month. I don't need your company." Lily still loved her mother. Despite everything the woman did to her, she was still her mother. She may not have been much of one, but she was the only mother Lily had. She still wanted her to be apart of her life. She reached in her backpack and pulled out a hair brush. She then started to brush out her long black hair. Since she'd been locked away, it had gotten straighter, making it easier for Lily to brush it out.

"I don't want you to be by yourself. I still love you."

"Well, I never loved you. In fact, I never wanted to have you. If I had found out I was pregnant earlier, I would've got an abortion." Lily had heard it all before. Her mother had always hated her. She didn't understand why she kept her if she didn't want her. Lily had always thought if she loved her mother and been nice to her, she would return her love. It hasn't worked so far, but Lily isn't one to give up easily. She still believed there was a good woman in her mother.

"I found a locket today in Daddy's shop. He said I could have it." She showed her the locket. Portia rolled her eyes.

"Why do I care what your new daddy gives you? I still don't understand why he wanted you. You're nothing but a worthless little runt." Lily said nothing. There was nothing she could say. Her mother had always tried to hurt her. Not only physically, but mentally and emotionally. Her entire life she tried to make her feel worthless and was a waste of space. Being with Gold taught her that none of that was true. Gold loved her and gave her everything. He had erased the pain of her past. She only visited Portia because she still cared for the cold woman. She finished brushing her hair and put the brush back in her bag.

"I fixed your hair, but Nurse Nancy said I can't bring anything to put in it anymore. Sorry."

"I don't care. If it gets you out of here quicker, fine." Lily sighed and kissed her cheek.

"Bye, Mommy. See you next month." Portia said nothing. Lily jumped from the bed and left the room, locking it behind her. As she made her way back down the hall, she had that same odd feeling in front of the door again. The first time she thought it was nothing, but she felt it again a second time. She was tempted to open the door and see who was there. She had the keys to all of the rooms in her hands, but she wouldn't dare. One of the conditions with Nurse Nancy was that Lily couldn't go into any other room than her mother's. She fought her curiosity and went back to the desk. She gave Nancy back the keys.

"Not much change, huh?"

"No." Nancy saw the sadness in the child's eyes and she softened.

"You know, you don't have to keep coming down here. She's just going to do and say the same things she always does to you. Why do you keep visiting her?" Lily often asked herself the same. Her mother never did anything for her besides give birth to her. She had been mean and cruel since she was born. Why does she come back every month?

"Because...she's my mommy. She's the only mommy I have."

"Personally, I think you're better off without her." Lily simply gave her a small smile.

"See you next month, Nurse Nancy."

"See you next month, Lily." She turned to leave, but a question kept poking at the back of her mind.

"Nurse Nancy?"

"Yeah?"

"Is there someone in that room next to my mommy's?" She straightened up.

"No. Why do you ask?" If no one was there, why did she have a funny feeling when she passed by both times? Maybe it was nothing. Maybe she was just tired. It was almost two o'clock in the morning. She needed to get home and get some sleep.

"Nevermind. Bye." She went back up the stairs and headed home.


	6. Chapter 6

It's been a month living in Storybrooke and things were almost exactly the same each day. That was apart of the curse. Time was frozen. No one had any memory of their past live except Regina and Gold. Gold didn't really care. He would have to live there for the next twenty-eight years, but as long as he had Lily, he was happy. Over the next month, Gold had seen a good bit of some of people's counterparts. He saw Snow White was now Mary-Margaret Blanchard, a second grade teacher. Jiminy Cricket was Dr. Archibald Hopper, the town shrink. All of the fairies were nuns. Dr. Frankenstein was Dr. Whale, one of the head doctors at the hospital. In his memories, Whale was the doctor that helped Lily. He recognized most of the people of Storybrooke. He did wonder where Prince Charming was. He didn't seem to be anywhere in town. He didn't think much on it. Charming wasn't a priority.

Over the past month, Gold mostly enjoyed being a dad. Lily was his number one priority. He gave her anything she asked for within reason. Her wants were almost exactly the same as when she was Rose. All she wanted was to be with him and spend time with him. In this new land, he could do that. He didn't have to hide her anymore. Everyone knew about her. If he wanted to take off a day to be with her, he could and people would know why. It would be one of those days. Gold woke up that morning as he always did. He went to Lily's room to wake her up and ready her for school.

"Lily, sweetheart. Time to get up." She groaned and moaned.

"I don't feel good." She coughed and hacked. Gold's eyes widened in worry.

"Flower, what's wrong?" She coughed again.

"My...*cough*... throat hurts." He felt her forehead and cheek.

"You're burning up with a fever." She was sick. She never got sick. In the Enchanted Forest, she was always healthy and happy. After she got a sore throat once as a baby, he gave her a potion that would keep her from getting sick. If she ever got sick, he wouldn't always have the time to care for her. Unfortunately, he didn't have any magic at his disposal and it had been years since he cared for a sick child. Baelfire didn't get sick often, but when he did, he cared for him the best he could.

"Daddy...I'm cold." He could she her shiver under her comforter. She was in no condition to go anywhere. He gently stroked her head.

"I'll get you another blanket, flower. Just stay in bed." She didn't need to be told twice. She could move if she wanted to. He left in search of a warmer blanket. He found on in the hallway closet. He gave her the blanket and went to the kitchen to make her some soup. He also made a call to Dove to pick up some supplies from the store. He brought Lily the chicken noodle soup along with a cup of orange juice. Dove would later arrive with some medicine.

While she ate, he put on one of her movies. She asked to put on _Sleeping Beauty. _Gold didn't know much about Princess Aurora. He knew Maleficient cursed her as a baby to an eternal sleep and she could only been woken by True Love's first kiss. She and Regina think too much alike. He didn't know what happened to the princess after that. After the movie was over and Lily finished her soup, she was tired. The medicine he gave her made her drowsy and he stayed with her and read to her as he waited for her to fall asleep.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, flower?"

"Did you...want me?" He was confused by the question. Why was she asking that?

"What do you mean, flower?"

"If I...didn't ask you...to adopt me,...would you still...adopt me?" He grew even more puzzled by this. Why did she ask such things of him? She was much too young wonder about such things.

"Of course I would've. Why are you asking me this?" She hesitated for a moment. She had been thinking about it for a while. While visiting her mother, she was reminded that he adopted her for no particular reason. They had only known of each other for two months. It wasn't much time to really known each other. She loved being with him. He had been the best father to her, but she still wondered why he wanted her in the first place.

"I was just asking." He knew there was much more to that. She wouldn't just ask that just to be asking. Was she having doubts about his love and care for her? Did she think he only adopted her because she asked him to? Of course, with their false memories, it would seem that was the only reason. She didn't remember that last five years of her life in the Enchanted Forest. She didn't remember him raising her from a baby. He loved her so much more than she realized.

"Listen to me, Lily. When I decided to adopt you, only a small part of it was because you asked me. The main reason I adopted you was because I care about you. I didn't want you to possibly end up with someone worse than your mother. Granted, I didn't think much of you when we first met. You were just a child of one of my tenants, but I soon learned there was much more to you. The two months went spent together were the best two months of my life. I know get to have those months forever. Adopting you was the best decision I've ever made in my life. You brought light into my life and you have no idea how much that means to me. I had been very unhappy and very lonely for the longest time. Bringing you into my life changed all of that and I wouldn't change a thing." He meant every word of it. She was the only happiness he had in his life, both in the Enchanted Forest and in Storybrooke.

"So, you're...like the king."

"The king?"

"From that story...about my locket. The lonely king. He was unhappy...until..."

"Until he found his little princess. And you are that princess, Lily."

"I...made you...happy?" He smiled and kissed her head.

"Yes, and you continue to do so each and every day. I love you, my flower."

"I love you...too...Dadd..." She drifted off to sleep. Gold still wondered why she asked about adopting her. Why would she question his motives for taking her in? Did she believe that he couldn't want her? With her memories of Portia over the span of her lifetime, who knows what kind of psychological damage the woman caused the poor child. Was she truly with him or did she fear he would turn out like her? He would never. He could never. Maybe he wasn't doing a good enough job. Maybe she was having second thoughts about him. Why was he suddenly doubting himself? He had raised Rose from birth the exact same way and she was happy. He then remembered she wasn't Rose anymore. She was Lily. Lily didn't have the same life as Rose. Rose had a life of luxury with a loving father. Lily lived with an abusive mother and barely survived each day. Maybe he had been going about things all wrong.

Gold carefully slipped from Lily's bed and quietly left the room. He went to his bedroom and dressed himself. He also called Dove to come and keep an eye on Lily. Once Dove got there, Gold headed out. As much as he didn't want to, he needed a second opinion. He needed know what to do. He got in his car and drove into town. He parked and entered the building. He knocked on the door at the end of the hall. Moments later, the door opened and revealed a familiar red-headed man with glasses.

"Oh, Mr. Gold. I...I didn't expect you. Is the rent late?"

"No, Hopper. I came to talk." The therapist was in shock and surprise. Gold had always been a very private man. Archie figured he must really be desperate if he came to talk.

"Oh. Of course. Come on in." Gold entered the office and sat on the couch. Archie's dalmatian Pongo sat in the corner on his bed. The dog reminded Gold of a certain witch who would love to get her hands on his fur. He wasn't there about that woman. He was here about Lily. Archie sat in his chair. "So, uh, Mr. Gold. What would you like to talk about?"

"It's...about my daughter. Lily."

"Yes. You adopted her sometime last year I believe."

"Yes. I did."

"Okay. Well, what seems to be the problem?" Gold didn't know where to start. He couldn't exactly tell him about Rose and their past lives. He needed to choose his words carefully.

"Today, she asked me why I adopted her. More specifically, she asked why I wanted her. Why would she ask that?" Archie took this in and analyzed the situation. Everyone in Storybrooke knew about what happened when Portia was arrested.

"Well, it is normal for her to wonder such things. Her entire life, she lived with a mother who...didn't love her, didn't care about her, physically abused her, and made her feel unwanted. While I don't know exactly what happened with her, her mother might have forcefully drilled into Lily's mind that she was worthless and that no one would want her."

"But I do want her. I care for her and I love her. She knows that. Why would she think otherwise?"

"Perhaps that's just her mentality. Maybe she feels that no one can love her because that's what her mother made her believe. When a child is taught at a very young age, it will stay with them for a very long time. As time goes on, they may start to see things different, but it will take some time before they decide for themselves which is the right or wrong way. While with you, she's living very differently. She sees you being kind to her and caring for her and it's new for her. Perhaps she fears that none of it is real or that it won't last too long. Maybe she thinks that one day, you'll wake up and think taking her in was a big mistake and she'll be brought back to her mother."

"That won't happen. I will not allow that to happen."

"It's not me you need to convince of that." Gold thought for a moment. Lily was afraid she wasn't worthy of being loved? He wished he had killed Portia. Even if everything was only false memories, Lily didn't know that. No one knew. That was all she knew.

"So what do I do?"

"Exactly what you've been doing. Love her. Care for her. Show her that she is wanted and that she is worthy of it. You plant that seed and help it grow. In time, she'll start to see that everything her mother ever told her was a lie. She won't have to question it anymore because you showed her she could be loved."

"And what if that doesn't work? What if she always thinks what her mother told her was true?"

"You continue to love her. This won't happen overnight. It's a process. She just needs time. Both of you do. Things will work themselves out."

"I see." Gold felt a little more at ease. All he needed to do was love and care for Lily just as he did Rose. He did exactly that since day one. He feared that things would be the same for the next twenty-eight years. He also had faith things would get better. Even with the never changing time, Lily changed everyday. Each day was different with her. Maybe things would get better. He had to believe they would.

"And if things don't seem to be changing, you can always bring her here if you think she needs to talk."

"I'll keep that in mind." Gold stood from the couch and Archie stood from his chair. "I trust you won't breathe a word of this to anyone, Dr. Hopper."

"Of course not, sir. I am obligated to keep everything here confidential."

"Good." He turned to leave. "And Hopper."

"Yes, Mr. Gold?"

"Consider this month's rent forgiven." Archie was in shock. Gold never let anyone skip out on rent.

"Oh...Thank you, sir."

"Don't get used to it. You still owe next month's." He then left and returned home. Dove informed him that Lily had been asleep the entire time. Gold then gave Dove the rest of the day off. He went to check on her and saw she was still sound asleep. Hopefully, she wouldn't be sick for much longer. Once she felt better, he would show her just how much he truly cared for her and loved her. He was able to make Rose happy before. Lily still had some Rose in her and he just how to reach her.


	7. Chapter 7

Lily got over her illness within a few days and was back in school. Gold cared for her each day until she was well. He had Dove keep an eye on the shop in his absence. Now that Lily was feeling better, Gold was able to do what he had planned. After seeing Dr. Hopper about Lily, he decided he needed to try to reach out to the Rose inside of her. They were the same in many aspects, yet different. They still had many things in common. One being that Lily still loved playing outside and loved nature. Unfortunately, she didn't have her garden anymore. Rose would spend most of her time out in the gardens and orchards. Lily didn't have that luxury and that needed to be rectified. He had a lot of land around his house that he did nothing with. It would make a splendid garden. That Saturday morning, he went to wake her as he did every morning.

"Lily. Wake up, flower." After stirring a bit, she moaned and groaned.

"I don't wanna go to school, Daddy." He chuckled.

"It's Saturday, sweetheart. And you should get up if you want to hear what I have in store for today." He smiled as she opened one of her eyes.

"What?"

"What would you say...if I said we were going to start a garden?" She lifted her head and smiled.

"A garden?"

"Yes. We have a large backyard. Plenty of room for any flowers you want to plant. You can do whatever you wish with them. What do you say?" Her smile widened.

"What about fruit?" He chuckled.

"We'll start with the flowers. Then we'll see about fruit."

"Okay."

"Good. After breakfast, we'll stop by the flower shop to pick out the ones you like."

"Yay!" They both got dressed and went down to cook breakfast. After they ate, they first went to the pawn shop to pick up a few things. They then headed over to Game of Thorns. Gold didn't really want to go there, but it was the only flower shop in Storybrooke. Gold grew a deep hatred for the former ruler of Avolonea and his lackey. He still thought they had something to do with Belle's disappearance. They were the last people who were with her, or at least as far as Rumple knew. He felt they were the reason Lily didn't have a mother and he didn't have his love. They pulled up to the flower shop and parked. As Gold and Lily were about to enter the shop, Archie approached them.

"Morning, Mr. Gold. Lily." Lily smiled up at him.

"Hi, Mr. Hopper. Hi, Pongo." She then proceed to pet the dog. Archie turned his attention to Gold.

"Mr. Gold, may I speak with you?"

"What about, Hopper? If you couldn't tell, I'm trying to spend some time with my daughter. Do I need to double this month's rent?"

"Oh, of course not, sir. It will only take a moment." Gold sighed and looked down to Lily.

"Lily, why don't you go ahead in and look around. I'll be just a minute."

"Okay." She went inside and Gold turned to Archie.

"What is it?"

"I just wanted to see how things have been since you came to my office. If things between you and Lily have changed at all." Why does he care, he thought. Just because he was the town shrink didn't mean he had to be involved in everyone's business. Though he wanted to comment on this, he kept it to himself.

"Things are fine. Your advice...was helpful. In fact, we are starting a garden today." Archie found this odd. Gold was never the gardening type, but he smiled knowing the reason behind it. It was all for Lily. Being a psychologist, he noticed the difference in Gold since Lily became his daughter. He wasn't the same cold-hearted beast the town saw him as. He was a loving father that would do anything for his new young daughter. He was still cruel and mean on the outside, but on the inside, he had love in his heart from the small child.

"That's...great. Gardening is actually a great bonding activity."

"Yes, and I would like to get on with my day so we may start."

"O-of course, Mr. Gold. Just wanted to check up on things. My door is always open if you, or Lily, need anything else. Have a good day, Mr. Gold." Archie then tugged Pongo along. Gold almost wished he hadn't gone to the shrink in the first place.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile<strong>

Lily entered the shop and was in awe. Flowers filled the room from top to bottom. She had always seen Game of Thrones from the outside, but she had never been on the inside before. The different aromas from the flowers filled the room. Lily loved it. Soon, her own backyard would be filled with flowers. The question was which ones. She could easily just choose all of them. Gold would let her have all of them if she wanted, but she didn't want all of them. She only wanted the prettiest and best smelling ones. She saw a large array of flowers. There were sunflowers, tulips, lilies, blue bells, and more.

She saw something red out of the corner of her eye. Roses. Roses had always been her favorite flowers. She thought it was funny since her name was Lily and the rose was her favorite. Some of the roses were pink, white, yellow, and blue, but the red ones were her absolute favorite. Red was also her favorite color. It reminded her of strawberries, her favorite fruit. She saw a pot of red roses in full bloom. She thought they were the prettiest that way. She wanted hers to grow out like that. She went up to the flowers to get a closer look.

"Hey! Don't touch those!" She jumped back at the loud and familiar voice. She turned and saw a very tall muscular man with short brown hair emerging from the back of the shop. Lily knew him. His name was George. Her mother brought him by the house a lot. She never liked him. He was always mean to her and mistreated her. Never as bad as her mother, but it was still bad.

"I wasn't..."

"Hey, I remember you! You're Portia's brat!"

"I..."

"You got her locked up! You..."

"That's enough, George!" Another man came from the back. He was shorter, older, and portlier than George. He had blue eyes and wore a grey hat that covered his dirty blonde hair. Lily knew he was Moe French and he owned the shop. She would sometimes see him in his truck delivering flowers. "What do you think you're doing?"

"This little brat..." He pulled George down and whispered to him.

"That 'brat' is Gold's daughter now. If we upset her, Gold could shut us down. We're having trouble paying our debts now." George groaned in frustration as Moe went over to Lily. "I'm sorry for my associate's rude behavior. How can I help you?"

Lily was frozen in fear. George yelling at her reminded her of when she still lived with her mother. Portia cared more for George than she did for Lily. Whenever Lily did something that upset him, she would be beaten. Many times, she feared that George would hurt her. He was much larger and stronger than her mother. He could hurt her twice as bad as her mother could. The worst she ever got from him was a push. That push was the least of her problems that day.

* * *

><p><em>Portia had George one Saturday night while Lily was supposed to be sleeping. Lily couldn't get to sleep that night. She hadn't eaten all day and her stomach was growling like crazy. She tried to ignore it, but it was too strong. After tossing and turning for what seemed like hours, she got up and went to the kitchen. Her mother and George were at the kitchen table with a bottle of wine. She went to her mother and tugged at her shirt.<em>

_"Mommy, I hungry." Portia rolled her eyes._

_"Go to bed. Then you won't be." She turned back to George, but Lily persisted._

_"I can't sleep. I hungry." George then turned to her._

_"Look, kid. Your mother and I are busy. Go to back to bed. You'll eat in the morning." _

_"You not my daddy." He stood up and grabbed her arm._

_"Hey! You don't talk to me like that!" She struggled to get out of his strong grip. She hoped that her mother would do and say something, but she didn't. She just sat there and watched. Lily punched his fist and kicked her legs._

_"Lemme go!" His gripped tightened and Lily could swear she heard a cracking noise from her arm. _

_"You show me some respect, little girl! Go back to your room!" He threw her on the tile floor. Her hands and knees collided with the hard surface. It sent a sharp pain up her arm. Still, her mother didn't move. How could she see someone else to hurt her child right in front of her and do nothing about it? Lily started to cry. The hunger pains were forgotten and replaced with the pain of her possibly broken arm. _

_"Mommy, I hurt." George groaned and turned to Portia._

_"You know what, Portia? I'm gonna head home." Portia stood and grabbed his arm._

_"No, don't. She'll be alright. Please stay."_

_"No. I gotta go in to the shop tomorrow morning, anyway. I'll see you later." He grabbed his coat and went out the door. Lily was glad he was leaving, but terrified that she was alone with her mother. Portia looked down at Lily, who was still on her knees on the ground. _

_"You! You just have to ruin everything, don't you?!" Lily's first instinct was to run and she did. She ran to her room and closed the door behind her. She didn't realize her mistake until Portia bust open the door. She grabbed Lily's bad arm and started to beat her with a wire hanger. _

* * *

><p>The flashback frightened her and brought tears to her eyes. She was only three at the time. It had been a long time since Lily thought about anything about living with her mother. She also didn't think about George. She never really saw much of him since she left home. Seeing him again triggered one of her worst memories. She instinctively grabbed her arm that he had almost broken. She once again had something else to fear. It wasn't just that she might be sent back to her mother anymore. Now, she feared having to deal with him. In the past, he tried to assert himself as her father figure many times. She refused to accept him as anything more than a man her mother brought home. She had a daddy now. Gold was her daddy and he was a good and kind daddy. He didn't hurt her. He wasn't mean to her. He loved her and proved his love for her everyday.<p>

A gentle hand rested on her head. She slightly jumped and backed into someone. She looked up and saw Gold above her. She then remembered where she was and what she was doing. She was in the flower shop. She was supposed to pick out the ones she wanted for the garden she and Gold were starting. She blacked out for a moment. Gold saw the tears and fear in her eyes. He looked to the two men in the shop.

"What's going on in here? What have you done to my daughter?" Moe shook his head.

"Nothing, Mr. Gold. I was just asking what flowers she wanted." George stayed silent. Lily tried to look at him, but she could feel his cold and angry eyes peering at her. She feared him.

"Lily?" She looked up at her father's worried and questioning eyes. He wanted to know what had upset her. She shook her head. She didn't want to say. She didn't want George to have a reason to be angry with her any more. Gold knew something was wrong. She was fine before she walked into the shop and now she was afraid and upset. Something had to have happened. "Well, you seemed to have upset my daughter. Considered this month's rent doubled."

"No! Please!" This made George furious.

"You can't do that, Gold!" Lily didn't want him to do that. Moe was only trying to be kind to her. He didn't do anything wrong. George was the one that scared her. Moe shouldn't have to pay for what George did. Lily tugged on Gold's jacket and gestured for him to lean down. He did and she whispered in his ear. He then understood. For some reason, George frightened her. Whether the fear came from false memories or something in her subconscious from the Enchanted Forest, he didn't know. He stood and returned his attention to the men.

"Good news for you, Mr. French. Your rent will not be doubled after all." Moe breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Mr. Gold. I..." Gold raised his hand to stop.

"It won't be doubled as long as your associate leaves while we make our selections."

"Of course! George."

"What?!"

"Now, George!" He rolled his eyes and went to the back room. Lily felt a little better with him out of the room. She didn't have to think about him for a while. She and Gold went on to pick out flowers.


	8. Chapter 8

It had been three months since the incident at Game of Thorns. Gold had half a mind to double or triple the rent so he could close them down. He didn't know why Lily was so frightened of George, a.k.a Gaston, but he couldn't let it stand. Lily knew that Gold had a tendency to try and "punish" those who crossed him or upset her. She was the only reason most of Storybrooke was still in business. Instead of focusing on them, he focused on Lily and her new garden. In the past three months, it had been growing in well. Lily tended to it every day after school with the help of Gold. He loved seeing her happy. He knew how much Rose loved the gardens of the Dark Castle. He couldn't give her that garden, but he could give her the one she had. There were daisies, lilies, magnolias, and many others. Lily loved the roses the most. The red rose was always her favorite flower. The bright red color, the sweet scent and what it stood for; romance and love.

Lily loved almost everything and everyone, but she loved Gold the most. He wasn't her biological father, but he was still her father. He took care of her, he loved her, and he saved her. He gave her a better life away from her abusive mother. She loved him, but she couldn't understand why no one else did. She would hear kids at her school talk about how mean and scary he is. None of it was true to her. She lived with him. She knew him. He wasn't mean and scary. He was nice and gentle, at least with her. She noticed the talk about the town. People feared for her now that she was with him. They would stare and whisper to each other. She tried to ignore it, but it bothered her sometimes. Why couldn't people see how Gold really was? She would always wonder, but at the end of the day it didn't matter. She knew what he was like. She loved him and he loved her. Who cares what other people think?

It was a late and stormy night. Gold had put Lily to bed hours ago and turned in himself. Lily usually slept through the rain, but the storm outside was anything but peaceful. The wind howled, the thunder rumbled, and the lightning crashed. To make matters worse, Lily was having a nightmare. Random images flashed before her closed eyes as the lightning flashed through the night sky. She saw a creature with the stature of a man. His hair was dark and wavy, his skin was green and almost reptilian, as were his large amber eyes. With him was a beautiful young woman who was clearly human. She had long curly brown hair, bright blues eyes, ruby red lips, and alabaster skin. Lily then saw herself with them. They looked like a happy family. The man and woman then disappeared and Lily was left alone in the dark. She then saw the man in a cave behind stone bars. The woman was in a stone room, her wrists and ankles in shackles. They were both yelling to her. They yelled for her to help them, but the name they called wasn't her own. The name they called was "Rose." The name rang in her ears as the lightning woke her from the dream. She sat up and panted. She didn't understand any of the dream, but it frightened her. She covered her mouth to muffle her crying.

Gold couldn't sleep due to the storm. He decided to go to his office to do some late night working. When he looked at the clock, he saw it was nearly two in the morning. In less than four hours, he would have to get ready to open the shop. It was a Saturday, so Lily would be there with him. He decided to try and go back to sleep. As he made his way up the stairs, he heard a sound from Lily's room. As he approached it, he heard it more. It sounded like muffled crying. Why was she crying? Did something happen to her? Worried, he opened her door and looked in. He saw her sitting up in bed with her hands over her mouth, muffling her cries. He then entered the room and turned on the light.

"Lily?" She looked up and he could see her eyes were bloodshot and full of tears. He could also see the fear in them. He went over to her and sat next to her on her bed. "What's the matter, flower?"

"Da...ddy..." She hugged him as she continued to cry. He held her close to comfort her. He hadn't seen her that afraid in a long time. What could have caused her to act that way?

"What's wrong, sweetheart? What happened?"

"I...had...a...bad...dream." Those were words he hadn't heard in a long time. He knew Rose had night terrors since she was a baby. Later on, he learned that her "nightmares" were visions. It seemed that she was born with the power of foresight. The visions got stronger once she got her powers with her locket. Since the curse, no magic should work, including hers. Then again, her powers are drawn from True Love, the strongest magic in the world. Was it possible that her powers could be active in Storybrooke? He would figure that out at a later date. For the time being, he needed to comfort his daughter.

"Shh. It's alright, flower. It was just a dream. None of it was real."

"But...it...felt...real." That added on to his suspicions.

"It might have, but some dreams do. You have to remind yourself that they're just dreams. They can't hurt you." She said nothing. She only clung to him as her crying died down. This was his usual routine for when she had a bad dream. After she would calm down, they would sit and talk until she fell back asleep. He could've gone through with it, but he didn't. It was the first time she had a nightmare since the curse. Who knows how many others she had while he was locked away? How many times had she wanted him to comfort her, but he couldn't? She may not remember it, but he did. It killed him to hear her cries for him and he couldn't be by her side. He never wanted her to go through that again. He would make up for lost time. "Would you like to stay with me tonight?"

She looked up at him with her bright but bloodshot emerald eyes and nodded. He peeled her from his side so he could stand. He wished he was still able to pick her up and hold her. He hated his crippled ankle even more. He held his hand out to her and he took it as she climbed out of bed. He turned out the light as they left her room and went down the hall to his. He pulled back the sheets so she could climb in. He then covered her and went to the other side of the bed. He rested his cane against his nightstand as he sat in the bed. He laid down and covered himself with the sheets. Once he got comfortable, Lily snuggled up to him. He smiled as he wrapped his warm arms around her.

"Goodnight, Daddy." He kissed her forehead.

"Goodnight, my little flower." Though nature was still at war outside, inside the Gold home was peaceful the rest of the night.

* * *

><p>Gold didn't expect the next month to happen the way it did. Lily had a nightmare almost every night. They had never been that frequent before. All she really told him about them was that most of them were the same as the first. She never went into detail about them. It was the same back at the Dark Castle. She was always too afraid to recall most of her dreams and he didn't pressure her. He didn't want her to relive the nightmare, but he was starting to get worried. What was the dream? What scared her that much? What could he do to help her? As much as he hated to admit it, he needed help.<p>

After he dropped Lily off at school, he went to open up the shop. He then made a phone call to someone to help him with Lily's nightmares. While he waited, he conducted his business as usual. He was in the back at his desk when he heard the bell over the door. He groaned, thinking it was a customer until the person called out to him.

"Mr. Gold?"

"Back here, Hopper." Archie felt a sudden dread down his spine. He had heard stories of being called to his back office. It usually meant eviction or closing of a business. He made his way to the back and saw Gold sitting at his desk. Gold looked up and saw the fear in the man.

"Mr. Gold, I..." He cut him off.

"Calm down, Hopper. You're not being evicted and I am not closing you down." Archie let out a breath of relief.

"Oh, thank you. I was worried for a moment."

"I can easily change my mind and that wouldn't be in your best interest."

"Of course not. So, what is it that you needed to talk about?" Gold gestured for him to take a seat. Archie sat in the chair near his work bench. Gold took a moment to gather his thoughts. He couldn't believe he was seeing the therapist again. And once again, it had to do with his daughter. In the five, almost six, years he had taken care of her, he had never been stuck on how to handle her problems. He couldn't understand it, especially since he barely used magic for her. He knew all magic came with a price and he didn't want to risk her paying a price. He never needed help caring for her, yet there he was consulting a shrink.

"For the past month, Lily has been having nightmares. All she'll say about them is that it's almost always the same dream. She too frightened to speak of them."

"Well, that's understandable at her age. Nightmares are the opposite of dreams. Children believe that if you tell someone about a dream, it won't come true. She may have the mentality that if she tells someone about her nightmares, they will come true. Even as ludicrous as the dream may seem, a child's imagination makes anything seem possible." He knew that whatever she saw could come true if they were visions. He couldn't really be sure unless he knew what she was dreaming about.

"How do I stop her nightmares?"

"Well, you can't just...stop nightmares from happening. They happen whether you want them to or not. Same as dreams. You don't really have any control over what happens once you fall asleep. Soothing the fears of the nightmares is different. Knowing what she is seeing and talking with her about them could help soothe her and help minimize whatever scares her. It's a process and it may take a long time, but in time, she will see that she had nothing to fear in the first place."

"But she won't tell me about her dreams. How exactly do you expect me to help her if she's too afraid to even speak of the dream?" Archie felt slightly frightened, but kept his professionalism.

"Coax her to talk. Sit her down and let her know your concerns about her. Let her there that you will be there with her and you won't allow anything in her nightmares to come true. You're her father. You love her. You care for her. You protect her. You need to reassure her of that. She'll need to feel safe and be comforted. She may not talk right away, but you just need to give her time. If you force it, she'll never talk and her nightmares may get worse. Patience is the key. She'll open up when she feels ready and comfortable to talk about it." Gold thought for a moment. Would that really work? He thought back to when Rose first told him her dreams about Zelena, the witch from Oz. He was telling her about Baelfire and she told him that she had dreams of things that have happened. She opened up to him about her dreams before. She could do it again.

"Very well, Hopper. I will heed your advice. Once again, you are not to speak of this meeting to anyone and consider this month's rent forgiven."

"Of course, sir. Thank you. Is that all you needed?"

"Yes. You may go." Archie got up to leave, but stopped at the doorway.

"You know, Mr. Gold, being a parent can be difficult. Of course I don't have any experience as a parent, but part of being a good parent is knowing when you need help. It's nothing to be ashamed of. You're doing it for your child's well-being. And despite what the rest of this town thinks, I believe you're a good father to Lily." He then left. Gold thought on the man's words. He had been Rose's family her entire life. He was all she ever knew. After Belle came along, things were easier with the both of them raising her. Now that Belle was gone, he was by himself. It was just him and Lily. Belle had less experience as a parent, yet she always knew just what to do. She learned things about Rose even he didn't know. He was lost without her. He still wondered what happened to her.

* * *

><p>Later that night, the nameless woman sat in her cell under the hospital. She still had no memory of her past life. She still didn't even know who she was. Her mind was still a blank slate. She sat in her cell alone. She looked at the diamond ring on her finger like she had done every night. She read the inscription on the inside of the ring like he had thousands of times before. <em>My True Love. <em>She wished she knew who her true love was. Who gave her the ring? Was the same man the father of the baby she was four months pregnant with? She wish she could remember, but she never could.

"Hi, Nurse Nancy." The woman heard the familiar voice of a little girl. The child came down there once a month to visit her mother, who was in the next room. She could hear their conversations. She heard how rude and cruel the woman was towards her young daughter. She never understood why the girl came to see her each month, but she would never get the chance to ask. Though the woman never laid eyes on the child, she could guess she was no more than six years of age based on how she talked. She then heard small footsteps come down the hall, pass her door, and went to the next one. She heard the unlocking, opening, and closing of the door. "Hi, Mommy."

"You came back? Ugh! Why don't you leave me alone?" Why was she complaining? If someone came to talk to me every month, I'd be happy, the woman thought. She couldn't understand why the woman was so cruel and cold towards her own daughter. The child was nothing but kind and sweet to her. What was there to hate about her?

"Yes, Mommy. Nurse Nancy said I could bring you something to eat."

"I don't want anything you have!"

"But I brought fudge brownie. I know you like them."

"I said no! What part of that don't you understand?!" The nameless woman wished she could have one of those brownies. Something in her subconscious told her that brownies were her favorite. She could almost smell the chocolate fudge.

"Okay." The woman frowned at how sad the girl's tone was. She wanted to just give the child a big hug. She wanted to talk to the child. That mother of hers didn't deserve her as a daughter. The child went on to tell her mother about school, friends, and her father, Mr. Gold. The woman wanted to meet this Mr. Gold. From the conversations she overheard, she knew he wasn't her biological father. He adopted her. The child always spoke very fondly of him. She wondered if Mr. Gold knew his daughter came there every month.

After telling her everything and finishing her hair, Lily packed up her things and left, locking the door behind her. She wished her mother would accept her acts of kindness. She was always so cold and distant towards her. Unfortunately, she was the only mother Lily had. Mr. Gold wasn't married. He didn't have a wife to be her mother. Though Lily still loved her mother, she wished she had another. As she turned to leave, she got yet another odd feeling when she passed by the door next to her mother's. Nurse Nancy told her the room was empty, but something told her that wasn't true. She didn't want to open the door since it would make too much noise. Nurse Nancy would hear and then wouldn't let her visit her mother anymore. She grabbed a stool from the corner and quietly placed it in front of the door. She then opened the flap on the door. She whispered in.

"Hello?" The nameless woman froze. She was afraid to say anything, even though she wanted to so badly. She hadn't had a conversation with a person in who knows how long, but she could risk the nurse hearing her. Lily looked in, but couldn't see inside since it was too dark. "Is someone in there?"

The woman stayed quiet. Lily had a feeling someone was there. She reached in her backpack and pulled out the container holding a single fudge brownie wrapped in a white napkin. She opened the container and took out the brownie. She whispered into the cell again.

"I think you're there. It's okay if you're scared. Do you want a brownie? My mommy didn't want it, but you can have it if you want." She held the brownie through the small window. The woman saw the brownie. Instead of dropping it, the girl held onto it, as if waiting to see if someone will take it. The woman almost didn't, but thought that the girl had been disappointed enough for one night. She quietly got up from her bed and made her way to the door. She took the brownie from the small hand. She heard the child gasp and smiled. She whispered two little words.

"Thank you." Lily was stunned. Someone was there! She had a feeling, now she knew. There was another woman there. She wanted to know about her, but she had to go.

"You're welcome." With that, she quietly closed the panel and put the stool back where she found it. She said her goodbyes to Nurse Nancy and headed home. The nameless woman returned to her bed and started to eat the brownie. It was chocolate bliss. She couldn't remember the last time she tasted the sweet delicacy of chocolate. She thanked the child over and over in her mind. She didn't know the girl's real name, so she gave her one. She didn't know why, but she called the young girl Rose.

**Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I meant to update earlier, but FanFiction wouldn't let me log in for the past few days and for a while I was out of town and staying in a place with no Wi-Fi. So, here's the update and please tell me what you think of it.**

**Also, guys, I am NOT a psychologist in any sense of the word. If I have a scene with Archie giving advice, I'm just making him say stuff that sounds shrinky. I don't know if it's true or not, but most of it is my own view on the subject, so please don't get butt-hurt if some of Archie's dialogue isn't true or just plain ridiculous. It's a story. Don't take it too seriously. **


	9. Chapter 9

After the advice Hopper had given him, Gold decided to talk to Lily about her nightmares. He didn't want to bring it up out of the blue, so it waited if she would have it again. A week went by and he was awakened by her screaming. He checked on her in the middle of the night to find her sound asleep. Had her nightmares gone away? Was she finally rid of the visions that haunted her at night? He saw this as a good thing, but also feared they would come back. Back in the Enchanted Forest, her nightmares would happen every few months. He was prepared for when or if they came back. For now, he could feel better knowing that she could rest without fear. After checking on her one last time, he returned back to his room and went back to sleep, now knowing of the new visions Lily was seeing.

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><p><em>Lily opened her eyes and saw that she was in a garden on top of a hill. The place didn't look familiar at all. Where was she? She turned to her side to sit up and felt a soft cloth beneath her. She looked down and saw an unfamiliar blanket. It was pink and had three large roses in the center with a gold vine wrapped around the stems. The design was very pretty and elegant. Where did it come from?, she thought. She also noticed her clothes were different. She wore a dark purple dress with long sleeves and white ruffles underneath. She grew more and more confused. <em>

_"Rose?!" She jumped at the almost familiar voice. It was a woman calling for someone. "Rose, where are you, sweetheart?! It's time to come inside!"_

_"Rose? Who's Rose?" She didn't know who the woman was calling for, but maybe she knew where she was. She stood up and walked down the hill. She only then noticed the giant castle. It was like one of the castles from her stories. There was an open door along the side. She figured that's where the voice came from and went inside. She walked down a short hallway that went to a great hall. The room had a long wooden table in the center, a rather large spinning wheel in a corner, and other odd artifacts scattered about. The room was almost as big as the entire downstairs of her house. She could only imagine how big the rest of the castle was. _

_"There you are, Rose." Lily turned and saw a woman enter the room. She wore a light blue dress with a white under shirt, white stockings, and sliver shoes. The woman herself had long curly brown hair, smooth alabaster skin, ruby red lips, and bright blue eyes. Lily recognized the woman from her nightmares. The woman that was calling out for help. Why was she calling her Rose? "It's nearly lunchtime."_

_"You! I...I know you." The woman looked confused for a second before she smiled._

_"Well, I would hope so. I've been living here for almost a year." _

_"But...I..." The woman felt Lily's forehead._

_"Are you feeling alright? I knew you should've taken a break. You've been in that garden for hours. Come on. I'll get you some water." The woman took Lily's hand and led her out of the large room to a kitchen. It was slightly bigger than the one at home. The woman sat Lily at the table while she went through the cupboards for a cup. Lily was even more confused. She still didn't know where she was, she didn't really know who the woman was, she didn't know why she kept calling her Rose. The woman placed a cup of water in front of her. "Here. Drink this." _

_"I...Thank you." She took the cup and took a few sips. She then placed the cup back on the table._

_"Better?" Oddly enough, she did feel a little better. She calmed down a bit. _

_"Yes." The woman smiled as she stood from the table and went to what Lily could only guess was a stove._

_"Good. The soup's almost ready. You'll be able to get something in your stomach. You haven't eaten since breakfast." The woman took a wooden spoon and stirred the pot that held the soup. Lily still had questions swimming in her mind and she wanted them answered. The woman thought she was someone named Rose. Maybe she looked like her and the woman was jut mistaken._

_"Um...Miss?" The woman turned to her with a surprised look on her face. "Who are you?"_

_"What do you mean, sweetheart? And since when do you call me 'Miss?' You didn't even call me that when I first came here."_

_"I-I don't think...I don't know you." The woman looked hurt as she sat next to her._

_"Sweetheart, it's me. Belle. Your mother." Lily was even more confused. This woman wasn't her mother. Her mother was Portia Hart back in Storybrooke. Maybe the woman, Belle, thought she was that Rose girl. "Rose, did you fall and hit your head? I told you to be careful on that hill."_

_"No, I didn't. I'm not Rose. My name is Lily." It was Belle's turn to be confused._

_"No, your name is Rose. It always has been." Lily didn't really know what to do. This Belle woman truly believed she was Rose, whoever that was. "Don't worry. I'm sure Rumple will know what's wrong."_

_"Rumple? Who's that?" Belle started to look concerned._

_"Your father. Rumpelstiltskin. The man who took you in and raised you since you were a baby? Surely you remember him."_

_"Rum...pel...stilt...skin? He's just a fairy tale. He's not real." _

_"Dear gods. Rumple needs to hurry home now." A cloud of purple smoke appeared._

_"I heard my name!" The smoke cleared and revealed an odd-looking man. He had short ruffled brown hair, rough green skin, and large reptilian amber eyes. Lily recognized the man. He was also in her nightmare. He was calling out for help as well. He too called out for Rose. He looked frightening, but Lily felt that he wasn't as scary as he looked. Belle quickly stood and approached the man._

_"Rumple, thank gods you're home." He took her hand in his._

_"What is it, darling?" Darling? Lily could recognize a term of endearment anywhere. Were they married or just in love? Lily didn't notice a ring on Belle's finger, yet she claimed to be her mother, or rather Rose's mother. She still thought it possible since her own mother wasn't married to her birth father._

_"It's Rose. I think something's wrong. She doesn't remember who I am and she thinks you're a fairy tale and she thinks her name is Lily." _

_"Lily? That's not the flower I named her after." Belle didn't find his quip funny. _

_"Rumple..." He kissed her forehead._

_"Don't worry, dearie. I'll handle it." Belle was surprised at how calm he was._

_"Does that mean you know what's wrong?"_

_"But of course. Do you think I would be this calm if I didn't and couldn't fix it?" _

_"I suppose..." He kissed her again._

_"Not to worry. I know just what to do. Trust me." _

_"Okay. As long as you know what you're doing. I don't want my daughter to think of me as a complete stranger." He gave her one last kiss before he walked over to Lily and held a hand out to her. _

_"Come along, flower." Her eyes widened in shock. Flower? Only Mr. Gold called her "flower." She questioned the odd man, yet still felt that she could trust him. She took his hand and he helped her stand from her chair. They were then surrounded by a purple smoke. Lily was both fascinated and nervous about the magic he was using. She had always believed that magic was real, but she had never seen magic like his. When the smoke cleared, they were in a different room. It was smaller and almost circular. There was a desk covered with too many things to name, a cabinet filled with many different vials, a large book shelf, and many other things. _

_"Wow. Where is this?"_

_"My tower. You're usually not allowed in here, but I suppose it's alright since none of this is real at the moment." Lily looked up at him in confusion._

_"It's not?" He sat her down on a chair._

_"Not at all."_

_"So, this is a dream?"_

_"Well, yes and no." Lily didn't think she could be any more confused._

_"What?" He pulled up a chair and sat in front of her._

_"This is somewhat of a memory. From what Belle has told me, you must be from the world without magic. The land after the curse."_

_"Curse?"_

_"Don't worry. You'll remember everything once the curse is broken. Your memory, along with everyone else's, has been erased and replaced with new ones. That is why you believe your name is Lily. Lily is your curse self." Lily had many more questions swirling in her mind._

_"So, am I Rose or Lily?"_

_"You are, and will always be, my little flower Rose. I found you as a baby in the forest and took you in. I took care of you and raised you. You've been my daughter since that day. In your land, you may have a similar background." Lily thought back to the life she thought she had. Her abusive mother, Mr. Gold taking her away from her, adopting her and taking care of her as if she was his real daughter. The only thing that didn't add up was Belle. She never saw her in Storybrooke and she certainly wasn't her mother. Where was she?_

_"But, what about Belle? I don't know who she is." Rumple was confused by this._

_"Isn't she my counterpart's wife?" She shook her head._

_"No. I never saw her before." Rumple was worried. Belle should be with them._

_"Then you must find her. If she's not with you, something might have happened to her. I doubt she's in any real danger, but she should still be found. She is your mother and she loves you more than your birth mother does. She was the first person you ever met. You took to her very quickly and you two have been close ever since. She's your real mother. Find her."_

_"Where?" His lips moved, but his words were muffled. She couldn't understand him. She then noticed everything around her was fading away. "Where? Where do I find her?"_

_"Lily..." She heard her name. The name she had always went by in Storybrooke. "Lily...Wake up..."_

_"What?"_

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><p>"Lily, sweetheart. It's time to wake up." She opened her eyes and was met with a familiar pair of deep brown eyes. They were Mr. Gold's eyes. She was back home. It was all just a dream. None of it was real, yet it felt real. Something told her it was more than just a dream. "Flower?"<p>

"Huh?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, Daddy. I had a weird dream."

"Was it a bad dream?"

"No. It was...weird." He smiled.

"Care to share it over breakfast?" She smirked.

"Can we have chocolate chip pancakes?" He chuckled.

"Sorry, flower. We had those yesterday."

"Then I won't tell you my dream."

"Well, that's just rude." She giggled. Maybe she would tell him about the dream, just not today. She got up and got ready for another day of school.

**Hope you guys enjoyed this long overdue update. I've been busy and had a bit of writer's block, but I finally got this up. **

**Also, I might update again tomorrow since it will be my birthday. I will be turning 19! And to think I've been on Fanfiction since I was 14. These years have really flown by. If you haven't already, you should check out some of my older stories. Most of them are for Star Wars the Clone Wars, so I understand if that's not your fortay. If you do check them out, they are a bit rough because, again, I wrote them when I was around 14 years old and I'll admit some things could have been much better. If you review, try not to be too harsh. That would be an awesome birthday present!**

**WARNING: If you have issues with closure, try not to read the incomplete stories. Most of them are on an indefinite hiatus. It will drive you mad. **


	10. Chapter 10

Lily didn't really think too much on her dream. For all she knew, it was only a dream. It couldn't have been real. She did wonder about that Belle woman. She seemed a little too familiar. Maybe she was a real person, but Lily had never met her. Maybe someone knew about her. Perhaps her daddy knew someone like her. She would be sure to ask him about her. During school, she drew a picture of the woman as best she could. Being only five-years-old, it was very rough, but she did her best. After that, it was recess. She ran out to the playground with the other kids. She joined a group that were playing Four-Square. It was one of Lily's favorite games. They went over to the big box with four smaller boxes drawn on the blacktop. One kid started to bounce the ball and the game went on. Lily bounced the ball a bit too hard and it went over the gate. The other kids groaned.

"Awe, now the game's over."

"I'll get it!" The other kids looked at Lily like she grew a third eye.

"You can't! We not a'ppose to past the gate!"

"I can get it!" The other kids watch as she ran over to the gate and opened it. She saw the ball had rolled to the other side of the road. She looked and saw there were no cars coming. She could run, grab the ball, and get back before anyone saw. She quickly darted out across the road and grabbed the ball. She checked again to make sure no cars were coming. She saw nothing and made her way back across the street. She then heard a loud screeching sound. She looked and saw a car speeding down the road. She tried to run back before the car came, but she tripped over one of her loose shoelaces and fell in the middle of the road. She tried to stand, but a pain in her knee slowed her. The car was fast approaching. Before she knew what happened, she was grabbed and pulled out of the road. She found herself back on the sidewalk and she watched as the speeding car drove past.

"What the heck were you doing in the middle of the road?" She looked up and saw a face she never expected. It was Mayor Regina Mills. She pulled her out of the way of a speeding car. Lily had mixed feelings. For the longest time, she had a fear of the woman. Now that she saved her life, she saw another side to her. Maybe she wasn't as cruel and cold as everyone thought. She was kinda like her father. Even she had a soft side. Without thinking, Lily hugged her.

"Thank you!" Regina hesitated.

"I...Why were you in the middle of the road?! You could've been killed!" Lily then remembered why she went out into the road in the first place. She looked down and saw the bouncy red ball she was fetching. She bent down and picked it up.

"I was getting the ball."

"You almost got ran over for a ball?! You have any idea how irresponsible and dangerous that was?!" She shrunk back. That was a very dangerous thing to do. She should have just told the teacher about it instead of going after it herself.

"I'm sorry." Lily's teacher finally saw the mayor and Lily standing outside of the gate and ran over.

"Lily? What are you doing outside of the gate?" Before she could respond, Regina snapped at the teacher.

"And why weren't you keeping a closer eye on her? Do you always let children wander out?"

"I...No, of course not, Madame Mayor. She..."

"Was under your supervision and almost got herself killed. What would Mr. Gold think if he knew you let his daughter became roadkill?" The teacher's eyes grew wide with fear. She, like everyone else in town, feared the notorious Mr. Gold. Ever since Lily came into his life, he had been more fearful. He was very overprotective of her and punished anyone that upset her. If he knew Lily almost got hit by a car on her watch, who knows what he could do?

"It...It won't happen again! There's no reason he has to know!"

"It doesn't matter. He'll know about it one way or another. Keep a close eye on your students or you'll lose your teaching position. I've got more important things to do than pull children from the road."

"O...Of course, Madame Mayor. Come along, Lily." The teacher took Lily's hand and led her inside. Lily turned and waved back to Regina. Strangely, Regina found herself waving back. She shook it off and continued her walk. She would have to stop by Gold's shop later on.

Back inside, Lily's teacher scolded her for leaving the school grounds. Lily knew she was in big trouble. She rarely got in trouble since living with Mr. Gold. She usually only did little things accidentally like breaking things in the shop or dropping dishes at home. This was much bigger than any of that. She nearly got herself killed. She knew Mr. Gold was already too protective and punished other people for her. If he knew about this, he would probably fire her teacher and she didn't want that. She loved her teacher. She was very kind and smart. She didn't usually like to keep things from him, but she felt it was necessary this time.

Regina made her way back to her office. She tried to get back to work, but she couldn't focus. She kept thinking about earlier when she saved Gold's daughter. Why did she do that? She easily could've let her get hit and devastate Gold, but she didn't. It's not like she liked children all that much. She remembered when she sent countless children to their deaths by sending them to the Blind Witch's house made of sweets. Was there something special about the child? She never even intended to go on that walk. Something just told her she should. Was there a significance to the child? Did it have something to do with the curse? Did she need her alive for some reason? She wouldn't know that for twenty-eight years, when the prophesied "Savior" would break the curse. She needed to keep an eye on the child.

The school day ended and Lily was waiting for Mr. Gold to pick her up. After being scolded, she was put in timeout for the rest of the day. She didn't like it, but she still wasn't going to tell her daddy what happened. She wondered if her teacher would. She did mention him not having to know about it when she was talking with the mayor. Maybe this could just be a big secret.

"Well, hello there." Lily was pulled from her thought by the unfamiliar voice. She looked up and saw a man with dark hair and clothes. Lily made it her mission to know of everyone in Storybrooke, but she had never seen him before. Was he new or was he just never around when she was. Either way, she was excited to see a new face.

"Hi!"

"Mind if I sit with you?"

"Sure!" He took a seat next to her on the bench. "I'm Lily."

"I know. You're Mr. Gold's daughter. Adopted, if I remember correctly. He took you from your abusive mother."

"Yeah. He's nice to me." The man smirked.

"That's rare. You must really special to him. I never would've thought in a million years that he could show kindness to anyone." This was a normal thought for anyone who knew of Mr. Gold. Only Lily had ever seen him as a kind person rather than the evil soul he usually was.

"Yeah. I hear that a lot."

"I'm sorry. I don't believe I've introduced myself, Lily. My name is Jefferson."

"It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Jefferson."

"Just Jefferson is fine. I never really cared for formalities."

"Okay." Lily then noticed an odd scar across his neck. It looked like it had been painful at one point. She wanted to know about it, but she thought it would be rude to bring it up. She tried to get her mind off of it. "I never saw you before."

"Well, it's not very often that I make my way into town. I only come down if I need some supplies or if I'm just bored. I spend a lot of my time working out of my home."

"What do you do?"

"I specialize in making hats. More specifically magical top hats." Magical? This sparked Lily's interest. Did this mysterious man really know magic?

"Magic hats? What do they do?"

"Well, none of them have worked so far, but they have great potential. They are suppose to open portals to other worlds. Magical worlds." Lily had never heard of such a thing, but it sounded wonderful. Having the ability to travel to magical worlds was something she would love to do. Maybe one of those worlds could be full of fairy tales like princesses and fairies. Maybe even the world from her dreams. She still wasn't sure if any of her dreams really meant anything, but it would be fun to find out.

"Wow! But why don't they work?"

"Well, I need a source of magic and I seem to be fresh out. Perhaps you could help me out with that."

"Me?"

"Yeah. You have magic in you." Her eyes widened in shock.

"I do?" He nodded and pointed to her locket.

"That little trinket of yours. It has a very powerful magic in it and that magic has been transferred to you. You could wield magic if you wanted to."

"Really? How?"

"Well, has your father ever told you about the story behind that locket?"

"About the lonely king finding a princess?"

"No. The story before that. The origin of the locket. Where it came from and how it was made." Lily sensed another story coming and perked up her ears.

"No. Tell me."

"Well, a long time ago in a land far, far away, there was a powerful sorcerer. He was the most powerful magic user in the land and people often called upon him for favors. As powerful as the sorcerer was, he didn't usually work alone. He would have other magic and non magic users to obtain things for him. In return, he would pay them in as much gold as they saw fit. One day, the sorcerer was called upon by a king. The king wanted a magical item that could help protect his new daughter. The sorcerer accepted the deal and called in some of his supplier to find such an object. A man with a magic hat that could travel to other worlds went to a special place to find it. He found a small heart-shaped locket that when worn, will protect the person and all they care for. In order for it to work, an sacrifice had to be put in the locket. Something very important to someone. Know one knows exactly what the king put into the locket, but not only did it protect his new daughter, but it also gave her power beyond anything known. To this day, any wearer of that locket will gain the same powers of the young girl as long as she loves. From what I've heard about you, you love almost everything and everyone. I couldn't imagine how powerful you must be."

"Woah! You really think I have powers?"

"I don't see why not. You just don't know how to use it. I bet I could help you and you could get my hats to work. Maybe you could come by my house one day and try."

"That sounds like fun, but I have to ask Daddy. I can't go anywhere without him."

"Your father and I are old friends. Well, not exactly friends. More like colleagues. We used to do business together."

"Really? I never saw hats in the store." He chuckled.

"Well, this was before I picked up my hobby. I was once a collector of hard to find artifacts. Your father bought a lot of things from me. That locket, for example. I found that for him."

"Wow. Why did you stop?"

"Eh, after a while, it gets boring. Plus traveling so much was very tiring. I decided to take things easy and work on my magic hats, which you can now help me with. What do you say?" She thought for a moment. She would love to see his magic hats. And if she could make them work, that would be the most amazing thing ever!

"Well..." Before she could answer, a black Cadillac pulled up. The door opened and Mr. Gold emerged.

"Lily..." She smiled at him and jumped up from the bench.

"Hi, Daddy." He walked over to her and Jefferson. He smiled at his daughter, then stared suspiciously at the man.

"Jefferson. It's been quite a while since our last meeting." The younger man smirked.

"That it has, Gold. I was just officially meeting your daughter. News of her have recently spread to my little neck of the woods." Gold narrowed his eyes.

"I see. Lily, why don't you get in the car while Mr. Jefferson and I...catch up."

"Okay, Daddy." She opened the car door and climbed into her booster seat. Gold closed the door behind her and faced Jefferson once again.

"Cute kid. Seems a little out of character for you to save a child."

"Well, believe it or not, I'm not a fan of child abuse."

"I would hope not. You have to draw the line somewhere. Children are precious. They need to be loved, cared for, and protected. By the looks of her, you've done a decent job. A bit surprising from someone like yourself, but good nonetheless."

"Is there a reason you decided to approach my daughter? Don't you have your own to attend to?" Jefferson's face paled. In that moment, he knew Gold remembered. He was awake just like him. Rumpelstiltskin knew of Jefferson's young daughter Grace. He knew what happened to her after the Evil Queen trapped him in Wonderland. Grace was no longer his daughter. Gold didn't know the exact whereabouts of the girl, but he knew she wasn't with Jefferson.

"You...You..."

"For your own well-being, I suggest you stay the hell away from Lily. If I find out you've been around my daughter again, I'll be sure you never see yours ever again. Am I making myself clear?" Jefferson knew exactly what he meant. He wouldn't hurt Grace. Back in the Enchanted Forest, Rumple vowed that he would never harm Grace not matter what. Rumple was shifty, but he was a man of his word and he wasn't one to hurt a child. While Jefferson couldn't care if he lived or died in that new world, he wanted his daughter back. If the curse was ever to be broken, he would have a chance to be with her again. Gold smirked. "Good. Good day to you, Jefferson."

"And you...Mr. Gold." Gold nodded and went back to his car. He got in and drove off. On the way back to the shop, Gold spoke with Lily.

"Lily, sweetheart?"

"Yes, Daddy?"

"I don't want you talking to Mr. Jefferson ever again." She was confused.

"Why not? I think he's nice. And he talked about his magic hats!" Magic hats? He must be trying to get back to the Enchanted Forest, he thought.

"Flower, just trust me when I say he isn't someone you should be around. He's not a good influence and I don't want you mixed up with his nonsense. If he ever approaches you again while I'm not around, do not speak to him. You are also to tell me when he approached you. I don't want you associated with him. Do you understand?" She didn't completely understand, but she knew better than to disobey him.

"Yes, Daddy."

"Good." They made it back to the shop. "Sweetheart, for hour movie tonight, I was thinking 'Alice in Wonderland.' How does that sound?"

"Okay! I love that movie!"

**Hey guys. Sorry this took so long, but it's finally here.**

**Also, I was thinking about Gold getting a dog for Lily within the next few chapters. Which Disney dog should be her new pet? Here are the choices:**

**A. Lady (Lady and the Tramp)  
>B. Tramp (Lady and the Tramp)<br>C. Perdita (101 Dalmatians)  
>D. Nana (Peter Pan)<br>E. Bruno (Cinderella)**

**If you have any other suggestions, please let me know in a review. I will make this a poll on my profile and which ever dog has the most votes my March 16 will become Lily's beloved pet.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey guys! I was meaning to update this sooner, but my body has been kinda weak lately and I've been a little sick. While I'm still not feeling 100%, I'm going to update today. Also, today was the last day to vote for Lily's new dog. At midnight, the poll will close and I will tally up the votes. There should be another update sometime this week. Alright, here's your update.**

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><p>Lily and Gold made it back to the shop. On the way, Gold asked Lily about her day as he did everyday. She told him everything excluding the part about running out in the street. She knew he would be upset with her if he found out she put herself in danger like that. He accepted her story and she asked him about his day. Gold thought it was cute that she would ask. He remembered when Rose would ask what he was always up to back at the Dark Castle. She didn't always understand him, so she was always so eager to learn as much about her father as she could. That particular day wasn't all that interesting. He mostly stayed in the shop doing paperwork. The most interesting part of his day was seeing Jefferson in town. He would have to be sure to make sure the hatter stayed away from Lily.<p>

Once they were in the shop, Gold retrieved Lily's snack of sliced strawberries from the mini-fridge in his office. Lily would usually eat in the back so she would see any business he had with customers. Gold didn't want too many people to interact with his daughter. In fact, he was even more overprotective of her in Storybrooke than he ever was in the Enchanted Forest. People knew of her. They knew she was his precious daughter, the only weakness they knew of. This particular day, he allowed her to enjoy her snack at the counter with him. He didn't want to risk Jefferson trying to sneak in from the back and take Lily.

Lily thought it was odd that she could be up front, but she didn't question it too much. In fact, she was excited. She hoped that she would get to see what her daddy did without having to eavesdrop. Unfortunately, the only person that came in was the last person she wanted to.

"Hello, Gold." Gold sighed, but put on a fake smile.

"Good evening, Madame Mayor. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Lily heard the slight disgust in his voice. She knew he didn't like the mayor. The whole town knew they practically hated each other. Lily didn't want the mayor to tell him what happened at school. She hoped she wouldn't.

"Oh, I was just dropping by for a visit." She smiled at Lily. "Lily, am I correct?"

"Yes, ma'am." Gold wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder.

"Now, Ms. Mills. I do believe we had an agreement concerning my daughter, did we not?"

"Of course. I'm just glad to see she's okay." Lily's face paled and she grew nervous. Gold didn't see this, but was confused by the mayor's statement.

"And why wouldn't she be okay? Are you questioning my ability to care for her?"

"Of course not. Considering what happened earlier, I'm surprised you're as calm as you are. If I was that close to losing my child, I don't know what I'd do." Lily knew she was in trouble now. Gold's anger sparked inside of him.

"And just why did I almost lose my daughter?" Regina looked to Lily.

"You didn't tell him what happened? My, my. I didn't think you would keep secrets from your own father." Gold grew even angrier and more frustrated.

"What the bloody hell are you on about?!"

"I saved your daughter from being run over by a car when she ran out in the middle of the street. And chasing after a ball of all things. That teacher of hers should really keep a closer eye on her students." To say Gold was in shock was an understatement. He was angry, frustrated, worried, and other emotions he couldn't completely register. The woman he loathed the most saved his daughter's life? And his daughter said nothing about it? He almost lost the one person that meant the most to him and he didn't even know it? He didn't know which was worse. Was it because the Evil Queen saved Lily or because Lily didn't tell him about it?

"Leave. Now." Regina pretended to be offended.

"Is that the thanks I get for rescuing your daughter? You really are a bitter old man."

"I said leave!" She put her hands up in defense.

"Alright, fine. I'll go. Just wanted to check in. I shall see you later, Mr. Gold." She gave Lily one last smile before she turned and left. The smile hid a nefarious meaning behind it. Lily knew and grew even more nervous and frightened. For the first time, she was afraid of her daddy. She had no idea what he would do in that situation. After Regina left, Gold turned to his young daughter and looked her in the eye. His look was both calm and intimidating.

"Lily, you know better than to lie to me, don't you?"

"Yes, Daddy."

"Now tell me the truth. Did you run out in the middle of the street by yourself?" Lily felt like she wanted to cry, but she held back as much as she could. She remembered when she lived with her mother that if she cried, things would only get worse. Mr. Gold has never hurt her before, but she had never seen him so angry.

"Yes." He took a deep breath and tried to keep calm. It was getting harder for him not to yell.

"And...and did Ms. Mills pull you from the street?"

"Yes." Why? Why did Regina save her? The evil woman could've easily let her get hit. He would've been devastated if anything happened to her. Regina didn't have a decent bone in her body. She's sent multiple children to their demises in the past. She even wanted to get rid of Rose. Why save her? Did she have anything to gain from her staying alive. He should be happy that Lily was saved. He should thank Regina for saving the life of his beloved daughter. All he felt was anger and confusion. "Daddy? Are you mad?"

"Yes, Lily! I am furious! It was irresponsible of you to do such a thing! You could have been hurt!" Lily was even more frightened. He yelled her her. He never yelled at her. She knew this was coming.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Sorry isn't enough! What were you even thinking?! Not only did you put your life in danger, but you allowed that retched woman to save you!"

"But I..."

"Am I a bad father?! Is that it?" Lily was now both frightened and confused. Why would he think he was a bad father?

"What? No."

"Are you trying to leave me?! Am I that bad of a person that you would wish to kill yourself just to be rid of me?!" Lily couldn't hold back anymore. The flood gates opened and she allowed the tears to escape from her eyes.

"No, Daddy! I love you!" He suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him.

"Lies! You hate me, don't you?! You believe I'm a horrible father! You regret me ever taking you in!" She tried to pull away to no avail.

"Daddy! Please!"

"Everyone I've ever loved has left me and you're trying to do the same! YOU HATE ME! ADMIT IT!"

"DADDY! YOU'RE HURTING ME!" That caused him to snap back to reality. He saw the tight grip he had on her arm. He saw the fear in her bloodshot eyes. He saw the tears falling down her cheeks. What had he done? He released her arm and slowly backed away from her. He hurt her. He hurt his darling flower. He could see the red mark where his hand was. Lily looked at him in fear and worry.

"I...I'm sorry, flower. I'm so sorry. I..." He couldn't find the right words to say. Was there anything he could possibly say that would make it better? She had to hate him now. She already had false memories of her mother abusing her. Now, she had a real memory of her father hurting her. He did the one thing he vowed he would never do.

"Daddy..." She tried to walk over to him, but he stopped her.

"Please don't. You should stay back, flower." She took her nickname as a sign that he had calmed down. She worried for him. She could see the intense pain in his eyes. It was a look she never saw in her mother's eyes after she beat her. He regretted what he had done. She knew that. "Go in the back. Please."

"Okay." She made her way to the back office. Gold ran a hand through his hair. He messed up. He really messed up. Not only did he scare his daughter, but he laid a hand on her. He wouldn't forgive himself for that. He wouldn't expect Lily to forgive him either. She had a kind heart, but even she had to have a limit when her trust is betrayed. He pulled himself together enough to call Dove to come and get Lily. He would take her home and stay with her. He needed time to think and she shouldn't be around him right now. It wasn't long until he arrived and took her. After they left, he tried to occupy his mind with work.

**Later That Night**

Gold closed up the shop and went home. When he arrived, he saw Dove's car still sitting in the driveway. He went inside and found the man reading a book in the living room. Dove told him that Lily fell asleep hours before and she was still in her room. Gold dismissed his henchman and sent him home. Gold reluctantly made his way up the stairs to Lily's bedroom. Just as Dove said, she was sound asleep. He once again saw the red mark on her arm. He would forever regret the day he hurt his most precious flower. He couldn't take back what he did, but he could make sure that it would never happen again.

After he kissed her forehead, he went to his room and prepared for bed. The events of the day took a toll on him. He tried to think of a way to make things right with Lily. He frightened her. He harmed her. He betrayed her trust. Something had to be done. He had to do something to show her that he still loved her. Something to make her happy. He looked out of his window and stared out into the night's sky lost in thought. What could he do? What could he do? A dog's bark brought him from his thought. He looked to the sidewalk and saw Dr. Hopper walking his dog, Pongo. Gold knew how much Lily loved that dog. She loved all animals.

"That's it!" He knew what he could do.

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><p>Hours later, Lily woke up and packed up her bag. She first went to Gold's bedroom and saw that he was sleeping. She knew how upset he was after what happened. She knew he didn't mean it. It was an accident and she forgave him. She kissed his cheek and headed out to the hospital. She greeted Nurse Nancy. Tonight's treat was double chocolate chip cookies. She got them from Mr. Dove. He bought them for her from Granny's. Nurse Nancy took the cookies and Lily took the keys. She went to her mother's usual cell and told her about the interesting things in her life, including both incidents from that day. Portia was much too happy about it.<p>

"So, the man is finally treating you how you should be treated. Do you still think him so perfect?"

"It was an accident."

"So were you. Had that car been faster, I wouldn't be having you bothering me anymore." Lily no longer took offense to anything her mother said. Nothing nice would ever pass through her lips. Ignoring her, she continued to fix her mother's long raven hair. She offered her one of the cookies, but she rejected them. "How many times do I have you tell you I don't want anything you have?! I don't even want you!"

"You could just say no."

"Are you getting smart with me, you little brat?!" Lily sighed. She didn't know why she continued to see her mother month after month. She would continue to question, but she wouldn't stop visiting. She didn't want her to be alone.

"No, Mommy. I'm going home." She packed up her things and stood to leave.

"Good. I hope the next speeding car hits you this time." Lily walked out and locked the door behind her. Before she left, she stopped by the door beside her mother's. She took two cookies from her bag and wrapped them in a napkin. She quietly opened the small flap on the door. "Hello? Are you in there?"

"Yes." She stuck the cookies through the window. With her visits, she always stops to give treats to the mysterious woman. She wished she could talk to her face-to-face, but she didn't want to risk getting in trouble with Nurse Nancy. Lily knew the woman could hear her through the wall, so she always made sure to speak loud and clear enough for her to hear. They only ever spoke a few words to each other before Lily would have to leave.

"They're double chocolate chip. I hope you like them." After a moment, the woman took the cookies from the child's hand.

"Thank you, Lily."

"You're welcome, Miss." Lily still didn't know the woman's name. The woman didn't even know her own name. All Lily could call her was Miss.

"You know, your father loves you a lot."

"Huh?"

"You said he yelled at you. That means he cares, you know."

"Really?"

"Yes. Considering what happened, of course he yelled. He was worried about you. He realized he could have lost you. He may have made the mistake of hurting you, but you know he didn't mean to. The last thing a loving parent ever wants to do is harm their child. If he truly regrets it, he's in more pain than you can ever imagine. All he wants is for you to be safe. If anything were to happen to you..."

"He would be sad. Daddy was sad before he had me. And he's happy now with me."

"He's a parent. He'll make mistakes, but you need to know that everything he does is for you." Lily smiled. Mr. Gold did love her. He cared about her and protected her. This one time, he wasn't there when she was in danger. Of course he was upset.

"Thank you, Miss."

"Of course. Will I see you next month?" Lily smiled again.

"Yes." Lily then left the hospital and returned home. She put away her things and changed into her pajamas. Instead of getting into bed, she made her way to Gold's bedroom. She saw that he was still sound asleep. She climbed into his bed and snuggled up against him. After a moment, his arms wrapped around her. She smiled and melted into his embrace. He loved her and she loved him. He was her father and she was his flower, no matter what. "I love you, Daddy."


End file.
